Celebrate 300 Veteran Farmers
September 28, 2025
Ring in Arcadia's 15th year of service to our community!
An unforgettable multi-course seated dinner on the farm to raise money for the Veteran Farmer Program!
"You are allowing me to do what brings me peace and serenity while helping others"
-Ephesia Sutton, VFP 2024, US Army
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"This program is life changing."
-Vince Arrington, VFP '22, USMC​​​
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thank you to our
2025 Sponsors
CJ Cross
Chalkboard BBQ
CJ Cross owns Chalkboard Wings and BBQ, and is partnering with Arcadia Veteran Farmer Rich Faucher of Faucher Farms for his pork course at this year’s farm dinner. Once a personal trainer, CJ has opened multiple restaurants and breweries, the most recent being Chalkboard in the Spring of 2022 just a few hundred yards from Arcadia farm. He works closely with Virginia farmers to source his meats at Chalkboard, a small 40 seat restaurant featuring a full bar and an ever-changing menu with new specials available each week. Throughout the pandemic, C. J.’s team served hundreds of meals for underemployed restaurant and health care workers. He volunteers with Bike to the Beach, which supports those affected by autism, by supporting marketing efforts and events execution along the East Coast. C. J. received his degrees from Northern Virginia Community College and James Madison University.
Reid Shilling
Shilling Canning Co
A Baltimore native, Reid Shilling graduated from the Culinary Institute of America in 2012, and into a job in the kitchen at chef Thomas Keller’s Bouchon Bistro in Yountville, CA, where he worked nearly every position. He returned to the East Coast in 2015 and helped open Jeremiah Langhorne’s opening team at The Dabney, where he soon became sous chef. He left The Dabney to open Shilling Canning Company, his first solo restaurant concept. Inspired by his family’s business of the same name that operated in Finksburg, MD from 1935 – 1958, Shilling Canning Company opened in July 2019 in the Yards Park area of Washington, D.C., along the Anacostia River waterfront. The 75-seat restaurant is Chef Reid Shilling’s tribute to the seasonal flavors of the Chesapeake region, and features a frequently rotating menu, heavily influenced by each week’s intake from local farmers and what is sourced from the restaurant’s expansive outdoor garden. This is chef's third Arcadia Farm Dinner, and we are thrilled he agreed to cook for us again!
Tony Chittum
Vermilion
After many years working his way up through kitchens, including Elite Cafe in San Francisco, Tony moved to DC to work at newly opened Equinox restaurant under the tutelage of Todd Gray. After serving as executive chef of Notti Bianchi for two years, Chittum joined NRG, where under his guidance, Vermilion restaurant in Old Town Alexandria received numerous accolades including a three-star review from The Washington Post. Chittum has continued his work with NRG, opening the beautiful, award-wining Iron Gate in 2014. He returned to Vermilion this year to focus on highloighting the Chesapeake foodshed and its many great farmers and producers. Tony is an old friend to Arcadia and an alum of too many farm dinners to count and we are always delighted when he says yes!
Rochelle Cooper
Duck & The Peach
Rochelle Cooper learned to love baking at a young age, making traditional desserts for the holidays with her mom. This hobby grew into a passion and she found herself at Johnson & Wales Culinary School in Providence.
Rochelle combined her talent for the pastry arts with her joy in sharing her knowledge and ideas with others by becoming a teaching assistant at Pennsylvania State University. During this time, professors encouraged her to pursue a Masters’ in Education and one year later, she wrapped up a graduate program at Penn State. Missing the rush and excitement of restaurants, Rochelle found herself in Washington, D.C at Range by Bryan Voltaggio, working under the renowned Chef Chris Ford.
The whimsy, science, and storytelling of Jose Andres’ Minibar drew her further downtown where she spent years in the two Michelin Starred kitchen before becoming a research and development chef for the Jose Andres team.
Former colleague and friend Chef Kat Petonito enticed Rochelle to join Eastern Point Collective to begin her own pastry program at the restaurant group’s restaurants: The Duck & The Peach, La Collina and The Wells. In 2023, she opened, Méli, the group’s fourth DC restaurant. Rochelle is considered one of the top pastry chefs in Washington, DC and, in summer 2024, was named Pastry Chef of the Year at the RAMMY Awards, the city’s top culinary honors. Inspiration for Rochelle’s desserts comes from nostalgia and seasonal ingredients available locally. She also has a knack for sustainability and is always finding ways to cross utilize savory and bar preparations in her work. This is Rochelle’s first farm dinner and we can't wait to see what she cooks up!
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Daniella Senior
Colada Shop
Daniella’s love for food and hospitality began at 13 with a home-based catering business in the Dominican Republic. A Culinary Institute of America graduate and Certified Sommelier, she has worked in top kitchens like Le Bernardin and led operations at acclaimed spots such as Zaytinya and Richard Sandoval Restaurants. In 2016, she launched Colada Shop, bringing vibrant food, coffee, and culture to DC. Now with seven locations and growing, it’s become a local favorite. She co-founded Michelin-starred Bresca in 2017 and followed with Serenata and Zumo in 2019—award-winning concepts rooted in Latin American flavors and storytelling. A dynamic entrepreneur, Daniella champions team development, especially for women and minorities. Her leadership has earned recognition from Forbes' Next 1000, Washington Business Journal’s "40 Under 40," and more. She holds roles with the James Beard Foundation, the U.S. Department of State, and serves on Vice President Harris’ Roundtable of Latina Entrepreneurs. In 2024, she joined American University’s Sine Institute as a Fellow, exploring how food intersects with women, immigration, and policy.
Rahul Vinod
Rasa
2023 RAMMY Winner - Favorite Fast Bites, 2021 Rising Terp Award, 2018 Eater Young Guns, Thrillist Local Heroes Award, Washington Life Young and the Guest List, and Washington City Paper Changemakers in the DC Food System.
Rahul Vinod is the co-founder of Washington, D.C.'s emerging fast-casual Indian restaurant brand, RASA. A former Wall Street Investment Banker at BNP Paribas turned restaurateur, Rahul grew up in the industry as the son of one of the nation’s prominent Indian chefs. As a child, Rahul continuously saw a number of barriers to trying Indian food for most Americans. This unique upbringing led him to partner with childhood best friend to fulfill a lifelong dream of sharing the Indian flavors he grew up loving in a more approachable way. RASA has received critical acclaim including being recognized as the Best Concept Mid-Atlantic by Starchefs in 2022 and was named Best New Restaurant and Best Fast Casual by Washington City Paper in 2018, among others. He was named an Eater Young Gun in 2018 and was the recipient of the 2021 Rising Terp Award from his alma mater, the University of Maryland. Rahul’s support of the community throughout the COVID-19 pandemic led him to be recognized as a Thrillist Local Hero and a Local Changemaker by the Washington City Paper. Rahul received his Bachelors of Science from the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business with a Bachelor of Science in Finance and Operations Management. Rahul enjoys traveling and eating his way around the world. When not in the restaurant, he can often be found on a golf course.
Chris Girardot
Ravenhook Bakehouse
When Chris was a child, he often watched his father, a chemistry professor, experiment with cooking at home. Watching these experiments fostered a curiosity about cooking that he still carries with him. Chris first started working in a bakery in 1992, intending it as a stepping stone while he figured out his next career move. But he quickly fell in love with baking. He asked questions, learned from other bakers on the job, took classes, read lots of books, and learned through trial and error.
Then in 2006, Chris Girardot founded RavenHook Bakehouse in DC with a commitment to the old-world style of bread making, relying on centuries-old techniques to produce delicious, grain-forward breads. Today, RavenHook makes European-style bread and pastries by hand and brings them to nearly 20 farmers markets every week.
Chris focuses on using really good ingredients, locally grown when possible. He’s a leader in the local grain movement, incorporating locally grown and milled grains into many of RavenHook’s products, as well as educating consumers about the value of local grains, teaching classes, and building a stronger community through Common Grain Alliance.
Jarrad Silver
Silver and Sons BBQ
Jarrad Silver is the chef and owner of Silver and Sons BBQ in Bethesda, MD, as well as the Silver and Sons food truck, which operates at various locations throughout the D.C. area. Founded in 2020, Silver and Sons serves a Jewish-Mediterranean twist on regional American barbecue.
Before founding Silver and Sons BBQ, Silver served as the executive chef for Neighborhood Restaurant Group, managing the kitchens at Birch and Barley and ChurchKey. He refined his signature style there, blending his Jewish heritage with Mediterranean and Middle Eastern influences while supporting local farms. He also served as the executive chef at Mike Isabella Concepts, contributing to the opening of eight restaurants over seven years.
Jarrad Silver’s passion for food started in his childhood home in Bethesda, where he watched his father cook and helped his grandmother bake fresh bread during visits to Connecticut. With both homes featuring vegetable gardens, he formed an early appreciation for fresh ingredients, despite being too picky to eat most of them at that time.
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Kevin Tien
Moon Rabbit
Chef Kevin Tien is the chef/owner at modern Vietnamese restaurant, Moon Rabbit, where he pays tribute to his heritage as a first-generation Asian-American and his love for Vietnamese culture and food. He is a five-time James Beard award nominee and Food and Wine magazine's Best New Chef of 2018. Tien was born to a military family and spent his childhood and early life in Louisiana. He was educated at both the University of Louisiana and Louisiana State University. Growing up Tien also spent time living in many waterfront destinations around the country such as Seattle, Wash., Hawaii, and Galveston, Texas. He infuses this cultural awareness of regional American ingredients into his cooking style and techniques today.
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Hamilton Johnson
Mallard
Mallard is the brainchild of South Carolina native and vet D.C. chef Hamilton Johnson, Johnson got his start at renowned Charleston restaurants and went on to become a well-known D.C. dining fixture — recognized for both his all-tattooed look and culinary talent — that dates back to his downtown days at Southern showpiece Vidalia under James Beard Award-winning chef Jeff Buben. Johnson went on to open the Southern-accented Nordic kitchen Honeysuckle in the same space, which closed in 2019, and subsequently cooked at American Son and Michele’s in the Eaton hotel. The name Mallard is a tribute to Chef Johnson’s father’s hobby of carving wooden decoys.
Kate Fiore
Buzz Bakeshop
Kate Fiore is the head baker at Buzz Bakeshop. Buzz is a beloved neighborhood bakery in the north end of Old Town, Alexandria, featuring a myriad of sweets, pastries, cakes, coffee, and so much more. From freshly baked cupcakes and rich fudgy brownies, to decadent cookies, craft coffee, and sumptuous breakfast croissants, muffins and sandwiches, our dedicated team of pastry professionals is committed to bringing you only the freshest handmade goods day in, day out. This is Kate's second Farm Dinner!
Kat Petonito
Duck & The Peach
Executive Chef Katarina Petonito oversees the menus and kitchen teams at Eastern Point Collective’s restaurants, The Duck & The Peach (seasonal, new American), La Collina (neighborhood Italian-ish), The Wells (intimate gin bar) and Méli (Greek-ish mezze and wine). Kat is a native of Maryland and a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York. She began her career and love of Mediterranean cuisine and culture at Graffiato & Kapnos. At Mike Isabella Concepts, she excelled and rose in leadership to
the Chef de Cuisine role at Kapnos Kouzina. Kat next joined the team at Starr Restaurants, working alongside Chef Marjorie Meek-Bradley at their urban steakhouse St. Anselm where she led the kitchen as Sous Chef and honed her skills in butchery and sourcing the best products. Now, at Eastern Point Collective, Kat brings her knowledge and passions together to
create inspired menus and flavor combinations, often drawing on her Italian and Filipino heritage and love of seasonal ingredients. Kat has been nominated multiple times for Washington DC’s RAMMY Awards including
Rising Culinary Star of the Year (2022, 2023) and Chef of the Year (2024). This is her first Arcadia farm dinner!
