Renowned for his culinary skills and his impeccable standards, Thomas Keller is the chef and proprietor of The French Laundry, a Yountville, California landmark that has been hailed as the finest restaurant in the world. Ten years after opening this, his first restaurant, in 1994, he followed with Per Se, which brought his distinctive fine dining style to Manhattan. Today, both restaurants enjoy three-star Michelin ratings, making Keller the first and only American-born chef to hold multiple three-star ratings from the prestigious dining guide. Chef Keller has also opened Bouchon, Bar Bouchon, Bouchon Bakery, and Ad Hoc, each of which contributes to the new paradigm he has set within the hospitality industry.

More than one million copies of Chef Keller’s books, including the New York Times bestsellers “Ad Hoc at Home” and “Bouchon Bakery,” and “The French Laundry,” “Bouchon,” and “Under Pressure,” a book devoted to sous vide cooking, are in print.

Keller was designated a Chevalier of The French Legion of Honor in 2011, the highest decoration in France, in recognition of his lifelong commitment to the traditions of French cuisine and his role in elevating cooking in America. He is only the third American culinary figure to be so honored.

Alena Rozanskl is the Pastry Chef at Bouchon Bakery & Café in the Time Warner Center at Columbus Circle. She oversees and coordinates all aspects of the production of pastry and viennoiseries for the bakery and café, ensuring that every guest has an exceptional experience.

Alena joined our team in 2011 as a pastry chef de partie. Prior to that she held pastry positions in New York and North Carolina. Now she draws on her experience to teach the employees working under her at Bouchon Bakery & Café.

Watching her grandmother cook Christmas cookies in a tiny kitchen planted the seed that eventually led her to a culinary career. She earned her Pastry Diploma from the International Culinary Center in New York City.

As chef de cuisine, Luther Dowdy leads the culinary team at Bouchon Bakery & Café at Time Warner Center. In this role, he is responsible for menu development, training and mentorship of all culinary and stewarding employees, and ensuring consistency with every guest experience.

Chef Dowdy joined Bouchon Bakery in 2013 as a chef de partie at the Rockefeller Center location. After two years, he transferred to the Bouchon Bakery & Café at Time Warner Center, and in 2016, was promoted to sous chef and later executive sous chef. In 2018, Chef Dowdy assumed his current role as chef de cuisine, through which he aims to lead the next generation of chefs.

Chef Dowdy developed a love for cooking and hospitality as a child spending time in his parents’ bar and grill, Rocky and Pam’s Place in Altavista, Virginia. Prior to Bouchon Bakery, he was chef de partie at Chef Eric Masson’s French Bistro in Little River, South Carolina, and a line cook at Chef Sean Christianson’s Divine Prime Steakhouse, Nacho Hippo, and Banditos in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

Chef Dowdy attended the International Culinary Institute of Myrtle Beach.