Where are you from? How do you describe the place you grew up to people who’ve never been there?
I’m from Lynn, Massachusetts, a coastal city just north of Boston. Known for its rich immigrant history and industrial past, it’s a place of contrasts—tightly knit urban neighborhoods that are set against expansive shorelines and marshes.
What work or experiences are shaping your year?
This year I’ve balanced cooking at Bayberry Garden while serving as support staff for cooking classes held by The League of Kitchens—a culturally immersive cooking school based in NYC— all while pursuing my own creative projects. Highlights included a culinary residency at Oak Spring Garden Foundation and assisting Chef Mina Stone on catered events for artists. Together, these experiences have shown me how food can live at the intersection of art, culture, and community, which is the path I want to keep building toward in my career.
What are you most excited to learn/do/see in this internship?
I’m really excited to see the editorial side of food culture and how stories are pitched, shaped, and shared with Edible readers. I want to learn how an idea becomes a published piece, and how to weave together history, personal narrative, and local food systems into something that resonates with the community.
What’s one question you have right now about local food in RI?
How are smaller farms and producers in Rhode Island adapting to climate shifts? With shorter seasons, heavy rain, drought and heat, what are the creative ways they are finding to keep local food viable?
What is your favorite way to enjoy food (cooking, dining out, shopping the farmers market, reading cookbooks, watching cooking videos, etc.)?
Cooking and baking full time in a larger restaurant can make it hard to find that same energy to cook for myself and my loved ones. That’s why my favorite way to enjoy food is through the extremely simple homestyle Greek cooking I was raised with, either in my backyard or at my parents’ house with my family.
What’s your spirit vegetable – and why?
I’d say the zucchini. It’s versatile, resilient, and often underestimated. It thrives in abundance and can take on many forms either savory or sweet.
