FOOD CULTURE REFUELED
A culinary education model from Chef Marcus Samuelsson empowering experienced culinary professionals seeking to break new ground through mentorship and two weeks creative retreat at Denniston Hill
With the Rise Residency at Denniston Hill, Chef Marcus Samuelsson is making a direct investment in the culinary professionals who will shape America's next culinary chapter. This first-of-its-kind fellowship combines six months of direct mentorship, archival research access, and creative retreat—selecting up to two mid-career professionals annually to launch defining projects. We serve professionals committed to various elements of the culinary space, including but not limited to restaurateurs, writers, farmers, sommeliers and small business workers.
A sponsored project of Maysles Institute, supported by the Mellon Foundation, in partnership with Denniston Hill, and propelled by a dedicated advisory board, Rise Residency provides what culinary leaders rarely access but urgently need: funded time to create work that lasts.
MEET THE FOUNDER
Marcus Samuelsson
Award-Winning Chef, Restaurateur, Author
Marcus Samuelsson is a world-renowned chef, restaurateur, and author whose culinary influence spans continents. His acclaimed restaurant portfolio includes the iconic Red Rooster Harlem and over a dozen more establishments worldwide. An eight-time James Beard Award winner, Emmy Award–winning producer, and best-selling author, Samuelsson is also frequently seen on TV, with regular appearances on shows such as Chopped and Top Chef.
In addition to his culinary work, he has made inroads in fashion, from Vanity Fair’s Best Dressed List to curating the Met Gala, and recently moved into lifestyle design with his successful West Elm home collection. Beyond his professional ventures, he is Co-Chair of Culinary Careers Program (CCAP) and serves as a Frontline Advisor for World Central Kitchen, advancing access to culinary education and food security around the globe.
Follow Samuelsson on Instagram, Facebook, and X at @MarcusCooks and on TikTok at @Marcus_Cooks.
ADVISORY BOARD
As a Rise resident, you'll work directly with advisors whose expertise matches your project needs. With a 6:1 advisor-to-resident ratio, fellows receive unprecedented access to expertise spanning investment strategy, legal structures, industry connections, personal development, culinary innovation strategy, and hospitality operations.
investment strategy
Margaret Anadu, Senior Partner, The Vistria Group
Culinary Innovation
Christina Grdovic, Culinary Advisor
Legal Structure
Trey Muldrow, Partner, Weil Gotshal & Manges
Industry Access
Dawn Padmore, Vice President, Awards, James Beard Foundation
Team & Personal Development
Derek Vitatoe, Founder, The HR Jock
Operations & Growth
Chip Wade, CEO, Union Square Hospitality
Two residents. Six advisors. Infinite configurations. Your Rise Residency project—they support your best opportunity to launch.
2026
Meet the Residents
Rise Resident
Amethyst Ganaway
Chef · Food Writer · Cultural Curator — Charleston, SC
Amethyst Ganaway is a Charleston-based chef, food writer, recipe developer, and cultural curator specializing in Southern and Gullah Geechee foodways. She is the founder of Water Whippin and leads multiple culinary and community-focused initiatives including Bramble and Harvesting Heritage, producing pop-ups, statewide programs, and museum-based experiences centered on Black food culture, land stewardship, and storytelling.
Her work spans editorial, event production, recipe development, and cultural programming, with bylines in national publications and collaborations with museums, nonprofits, farmers, and major brands. She is also the author of the forthcoming cookbook From the Roota to the Toota (2027).
Residency Project
Building a platform that honors the wider heritage of Southern food while creating space for contemporary voices across the region.
Rise Resident
Klancy Miller
Author · Pastry Chef · Magazine Founder — New York, NY
Klancy Miller is the author of the award-winning For the Culture: Phenomenal Black Women and Femmes in Food (Harvest Books/HarperCollins, 2023) and Cooking Solo: The Fun of Cooking for Yourself (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2016), and founder of For the Culture, a magazine celebrating Black women and femmes in food and wine.
After graduating from Columbia University, she earned a diplôme de pâtisserie from Le Cordon Bleu Paris and apprenticed at the Michelin-starred Taillevent. She contributes to The New York Times, Vogue, The Washington Post, Bon Appétit, and more. A James Beard Foundation award finalist and 2024 IACP Award winner for Literary or Historical Food Writing.
Residency Project
Public art installations exploring community picnics — offering care, play, rest, and food — in parks and beaches across the US and beyond.
Rise Fellow
Jen Matthews
Chef · Creative Strategist — Boston, MA
Jen Matthews is a chef and creative strategist with a background in marketing and experiential brand building, approaching food as a creative medium for expression and connection. She began her career in hospitality at 18 and later collaborated with Soho House New York and Soul Basel Miami.
A graduate of the Culinary Institute of Barcelona and stagiaire at Osteria Francescana, Jen builds original work at the intersection of food, storytelling, and culture.
Residency Project
16 Mothers — ancestral menus tracing the journey from the first arrival of Africans in America to the present, honoring Black women's role in shaping the American palate.
ABOUT THE RISE RESIDENCY
Rise is a first of its kind culinary residency. We provide a transformative, community-centered, culinary education model that empowers experienced culinary professionals, working across food culture, to break ground on new projects.