The Team

The team at WhereFoodiesGo.com is a dedicated group of culinary enthusiasts with a single mission:
to host inspiring and informative conversations between you, our fellow foodies, and the World’s Top Food
and Wine Masters.

Mark Leonard
Mark Leonard
Chief Cook and Bottle Washer

Mark learned his appreciation for food and wine from his parents, who frequently entertained friends and family, and (usually) included the children in the festivities. After getting his MBA at the University of Virginia, and to the horror of his family, he became a busboy at Harrah's Summit restaurant in ...

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Julie Leonard
Julie Leonard
Tech Chef

Simply put, Julie likes to "cook for an audience". Her favorite "foodie" thing to do is to try out new recipes on her dinner party guests. Even when the results are "mixed," there is always a good bottle of wine, conversation and laughter to make up for any stress caused by the occasional sunken soufflé or ...

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Chris Ardito
Chris Ardito
Co-Founder

Chris' fascination with food was born of two powerful influences. Her mom, a southern farm girl who took fresh organic produce for granted. And her grandmother, a northern Italian transplant who brought her European culinary skills - and Chris' father - with her to the U.S. Chris still recalls the ...

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Troy Ziel
Troy Ziel
Co-Founder

Troy, who became known as "the extreme airline brat," took full advantage of his father's employee airline privileges to expand his appreciation of foreign cuisine. He quickly discovered the difference between his mom's authentic Brazilian black beans and rice and his neighbor's 'mac n'cheese' meal. Troy also found that ...

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Our Hosts

Dominic Venegas
Dominic Venegas

Dominic Venegas has worked in the spirits industry for over 10 years.  During this time he has been involved with working and setting up spirits and cocktail programs throughout San Francisco.  From a Michelin Star rated restaurant, Range, to some of the world's top cocktail programs, ...

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Earl Shaddix
Earl Shaddix

Since childhood, Earl's life has been all about Food and Wine. Born into a ranching family, he found his niche in both the farming community and the kitchen at an early age. In fact, nearly every aspect of Earl's life experience has been rooted in some area of the Culinary Arts: from working as a ca ...

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Marc Vogel
Marc Vogel

Chef, Author, Inventor, Marc Vogel is known as the "Cuisinier Mondial." Traveling the globe, spanning cultures and cuisines, ChefMarc has prepared dinners for over sixty-five Heads of States and Presidents. He has written books on cooking as well as an astute and detailed firsthand account of the mo ...

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Stu Smith
Stu Smith

Stu Smith has owned, operated and developed more than a dozen restaurants and saloons in San Francisco over the last three decades and loves everything about the business. Always striving to offer the finest in food, service and atmosphere, he developed a loyal base of followers that included the me ...

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CLOSE

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