I am a native of Miami & 1st generation Portuguese American, born and raised in the South Miami area and grew up in the hospitality industry where both my parents worked much of their lives. My culinary and holistic journey began at 19 years old when I began experiencing serious health issues. After immersive research into the faults of our current food & medical systems coupled with a profound experience with a tomato from the rich soil of my great grandparents farm in the ancient village of Aldeia Velha in the north of Portugal, I began to understand the healing powers of our planet & self. And so, I decided to work through the culinary industry in hopes of someday carving a new path for our food systems by experiencing the faults first hand, to then use the skills I would acquire in this career to create innovative consumer & producer solutions. For the next 8 years I intentionally worked every position in a restaurant, from bus boy to general manager of 2 locations for an organic fast casual restaurant, to executive sous chef at the Auberge residences. When the pandemic hit, I immediately went to work on farms in California, Tennessee and Puerto Rico while being sponsored by Blue Hill at Stone Barns in New York & WWOOF USA. During this time I learned from and built a network of scientists, herbalists, farmers, chefs, foragers, and other experts at the forefront of the movement to revolutionize our food systems. Upon my return to Miami, I started my own business popping up at large festivals & community events with mushroom and hyper local themed culinary concepts. Paths eventually crossed with Paradise Farms where I would become the Culinary Director from 2022-2023, executing private experiences, creating a line of certified organic added value products for the farm as well as working closely with the farm team to develop a growing strategy that would increase biodiversity while producing 100-150% more food per square foot. I now embark on another new chapter, seeking nothing less than to collaborate, curate, impact and educate to empower others so that they may take care of this world with a newfound love in their daily lives.