Samuel Mervis

Retail: For the last two years I have had the privilege of helping to curate and manage Ruckus Glass Gallery, located in Old City (Philly). The job requires a love for high end glass art as well as steady customer interaction. Working in the city and in retail in general I've realized you come across all sorts of different people and that's one of the things I have come to love about it is talking with each person and just having a dialogue.

Cooking:

Creative and highly passionate chef with a hardworking drive and eagerness to learn new techniques and skills. Graduated from Ballymaloe Cookery School in Ireland. After which, I spent the next two and a half months traveling through the United Kingdom on the hunt for work experience. I started off in Northern England at a restaurant called Hjem, where we entertained about 20 covers a night with a 6 or a 12 course tasting menu. Worked closely with the head and sous chef as it was the three of us for the most part on the team.

After this, I spent some time in Leeds where I worked at a bakery for a week helping mainly with croissant and bread production. Following Leeds, I went to Edinburgh where I worked with the Edinburgh Food Studio for a weeks time. Here they offer simple plates with high quality ingredients featured on an a la carte menu. They offered lunch and a set dinner. Lastly I went to London, where I worked with Ikoyi, a restaurant with a menu inspired by West African cuisine. What I retained from my time abroad has become invaluable cooking experience I carry with me.