BENCHMARK¨, a global hospitality company, has namedÊSean Ruddy executive chef forÊHigh Hampton Resort,Êlocated in Cashiers, North Carolina. The resort is aÊBenchmark Resorts & Hotels¨Êproperty. Tom Garcia, Benchmark’s vice president and general manager, made the announcement.
ÒI am so pleased to welcome Sean to High Hampton Resort,Ó said Mr Garcia.ÊÒHe blends his love for cooking and his profound appreciation of the importance cuisine plays in our guests’ lives with his tremendous love for the south and the region’s unique flavours.Ó
Chef Sean Ruddy was previously the executive chef for the Greystone Inn of Lake Toxaway, North Carolina. During his tenure there, the property was named toÊConde Nast Traveler’sÊprestigious listing of Top 15 Places to Stay in the United States, and it achieved Four Diamond status.
Sean Ruddy began his culinary career at the young age of 15 working part-time in restaurants near his home. He graduated from Florida Culinary Institute in West Palm Beach following high school. After this, he moved to the Caribbean to the Cayman Islands, where his knowledge of blending the flavours of diverse cultures and using fresh local ingredients and spices was developed. He completed his culinary studies at the Culinary Institute of America in St. Helena, California.
ÒI love taking cooking styles from diverse regions and bringing these to the south,Ó said Chef Ruddy, who identifies his cooking style as New Southern Cuisine. ÒCooking is an act of love and it requires a special touch to make it appealing to everyone.Ó Sean Ruddy resides in Toxaway, North Carolina.
