Guest Chef Night: Chef Matt Lewis & Dre Neeley

Chef Matt Lewis started his culinary career in the kitchens of his mom and grandmother in New Orleans, LA before starting his professional career in the kitchen of Frank Stitt at Bottega, in Birmingham, AL. After graduating from the Culinary Institute of America (CIA) in Hyde Park, NY and working to hone his skills in such restaurants as Restaurant Zoe, The Four Seasons and Canlis, Matt chose to venture out on his own. In 2010, he started the nationally acclaimed food truck, Where Ya At, Matt. In 2013 he took another big step in his career and opened Restaurant Roux, a more refined spinoff of the truck which was heralded, Best New Restaurant in Seattle for 2014. After selling Roux in 2018, Matt opened a second truck and is focused on the continued expansion of his catering and event operations. Since Covid, Matt created a platform called Chef Box Live, with his friends at Sound Excursions, where they create memorable cooking experiences via live-streams which include curated, raw ingredient kits with everything needed for each class.

In addition to his culinary passion, Chef Matt has been working towards honing his farming skills in a pursuit to raise the perfect oyster. He plans to create a series of dinners around these salty bivalves, sharing his passion and lessons learned while growing oysters on one of his favorite places, Vashon Island.

Chef Dre Neeley owns and operates Gravy, on Vashon Island, with his wife, Pepa Brower. Over the past seven years, Gravy has built a following among islanders and visitors alike, for their creative takes on classic American fare. Chef Neeley draws upon flavors and techniques from his youth in the south and those gleaned from decades working in restaurants with varied cuisines. Ever curious and always learning, Dre strives to create inspired, memorable meals.

Dre Neeley crafts dishes based on diverse influences, from his Southern roots, cuisines encountered traveling as a military brat and in various kitchen roles in and around Seattle. He believes in using seasonal, local ingredients to create meals that are succinct and sophisticated.

Guest Chef Night pairs premier local chefs with FareStart students to create a three-course meal served by volunteer community members. All revenue and donations from Guest Chef Night support FareStart’s job training and placement programs.