Reuel J. Smith
Reuel (sailchef@ibm.net) grew up in one of the western suburbs of Boston. After leaving college he embarked on a career in sales and marketing with a major Canadian multi-national company. Frequent travel, promotions and transfers moved him from the U.S. to Puerto Rico, Venezuela, and Brazil.
From a base in Sao Paulo, Reuel traveled the entire country thus acquiring an intimate knowledge of Brazil's regional foods, culture and geography. Although his career has taken him in new directions he frequently travels to Latin America and maintains contact with many food sources there.
A strong interest in food led him, after returning to the U. S., to enter food retailing by purchasing Boyer's French Pastry, a small, well known shop located just north of New Orleans. Subsequent career moves led him to being pastry chef at the New Orleans Marriott Hotel and Nashville's Vanderbilt Plaza Hotel. He also managed the U.S. test bakery for the Swiss firm Seewer-Rondo. While chef-instructor at Johnson & Wales University he concurrently earned a degree in culinary arts. Currently, chef Smith is Food Service Director of a mortgage company dining and catering facility in Richmond, Virginia.
A vast accumulation of food knowledge and experience led him into food writing. His monthly column "Production Techniques" is published in Bakers Journal, Canada's leading bakery industry journal. His articles on food styles, international cuisines, ingredients and dining trends published in Chef magazine have been widely read by professional chefs throughout the United States. He has also published features in Restaurateur of Hampton Roads and Modern Baking.
As a professional chef accustomed to teaching culinary arts, his recipes are concise, accurate and well tested. Readers will find the recipes flavorful and easy to recreate in their own kitchens. In the creation of articles relating to Brazil he utilizes the editing and proof-reading skills of his wife, Marcia, a Brazilian from Sao Paulo who also has a great knowledge and love of fine food.