Meet Our Chefs

Fresh, estate-grown and locally-sourced ingredients inspire our talented chefs to create menus influenced by the rich agricultural heritage of Western North Carolina and the legendary hospitality of the Vanderbilts. We are proud of our entire culinary team that brings the best of Biltmore to the table, and we invite you to meet our chefs:

Biltmore Executive Chefs

Executive Chef Noriko Oda
Bistro

In her role as Bistro Executive Chef, Noriko Oda emphasizes the importance of Biltmore’s field to table program while acting as a mentor to her staff and interns. Before coming to Biltmore in 2008, Chef Noriko Oda worked in fine restaurants around the world. Beginning with an interest in creating pastries, the Japanese native continued expanding her culinary skills to encompass more options, always with a passion for creating harmony in the flavor, balance, and texture of her dishes. Chef Oda creates fresh, seasonal menus for Bistro that showcase her passion and energy for fine dining.

Executive Chef Kirk Fiore
Deerpark & Lioncrest

Executive Chef Kirk Fiore joined Biltmore in 2013, and our guests at Deerpark and Lioncrest have been able to taste the attention to detail and caring with which he prepares every meal. It’s rare to find everything made from scratch in a restaurant setting, but it’s even more unusual in event spaces where many meals are served banquet and buffet style. But at Lioncrest and Deerpark, Fiore’s team achieves this standard of excellence. According to Chef Kirk, working as a team is one of the most satisfying parts of the job for him.

Executive Chef Mark DeMarco
Cedric’s Tavern

With a love of the freshest and finest ingredients, Executive Chef Mark DeMarco of Cedric’s Tavern stays true to his home-cooking roots and the culinary lessons he learned helping with his family’s catering business. For Mark, delivering the best dining experience starts with the sourcing, and knowing the people who raise and grow ingredients for Cedric’s dishes is key. Mark and his staff don’t take shortcuts, and everything, including the bread, is made from scratch, in-house daily.

Executive Chef Shannon Sutherland
Stable Cafe

After graduating from the Florida Culinary Institute, Chef Shannon Sutherland held key positions at high-profile resorts including The Garden Grove at Walt Disney World and the Westin Times Square. In her current role as Executive Chef for Stable Cafe, she’s responsible for everything from menu development to catering fantastic weddings on the Front Lawn of Biltmore House. Chef Sutherland believes food tastes best when you know where it’s coming from, and she enjoys using our freshest local and estate-raised ingredients.

Biltmore Pastry Chefs

Pastry Chef Cassi Cardwell
Stable Cafe

Stable Café Pastry Chef Cassi Cardwell earned her associate degree in Baking & Pastry Arts from Johnson & Wales University in 2008. After graduation, Cassi spent a year with a catering firm in Charlotte, then worked at Pinehurst Resort and Country Club for three years before joining Biltmore. In addition to overseeing all pastries, breads, and desserts for Stable Café and the Victorian Bake Shop in the Stable Courtyard, Cassi and her team also prepare desserts for banquets catered by Stable Cafe and create the wedding cakes for ceremonies on the Front Lawn, South Terrace, and Italian Garden.

Pastry Chef Rachel vom Orde
Bistro 

While studying at the New England Culinary Institute in Vermont, Rachel vom Orde interned at Biltmore. After graduating with a degree in Baking & Pastry-Making, Rachel returned to Biltmore and now serves as Pastry Chef for the Bistro, creating all its breads, doughs, pastries, and desserts in-house. A self-described behind-the-scenes person, Rachel enjoys the inner workings of restaurants and the challenges of preparing exceptional cuisine featuring the estate’s freshest seasonal produce.

Pastry Sous Chef Tara Lumley
Deerpark, Lioncrest & Catering

Tara Lumley is Pastry Sous Chef for Deerpark, Lioncrest, and Biltmore Catering. A graduate of the Culinary Institute of America with a degree in pastry, she worked at the Ritz Carlton in Naples, Florida for a decade before joining Biltmore in 2014. Whether she’s baking at Biltmore or in her own kitchen at home, Tara enjoys the field-to-table philosophy that the estate emphasizes, like using what’s in season and finding interesting new ways to create different menus using ingredients that are plentiful at the moment.