Our Culinary Team
Robert Wysong
Executive Chef - The Sanctuary at Kiawah Island Golf Resort
Robert Wysong, executive chef at The Sanctuary at Kiawah Island Golf Resort, began his culinary career at the feet of his father in their Washington, D.C. home."Every morning, we would cook breakfast together," says Wysong. "I was encouraged from an early age to develop my culinary interest and create an art form."
A graduate of Johnson and Wales University in Charleston, SC, Wysong has worked at the Ritz Carlton Golf Resort in Naples, FL, the Grove Park Inn Resort and Spa in Asheville, NC, and The Pensacola Country Club in Pensacola, FL. In 2000 he was awarded chef of the year at Western North Carolina Chef’s Association.
"A great chef offers humility, a love of the craft and a love of food," says Wysong, who strives to keep his culinary simple yet precise. Wysong joined the team at The Sanctuary prior to the hotel’s spectacular August 2004 opening. With 15 years of professional experience, he helps lead a team of dedicated professionals and is integrally involved in the design and preparation of custom menus for The Sanctuary’s large meetings and banquets business.
Kevin Ives
Chef de Cuisine - Ocean Room
After graduating from the Florida Culinary Institute in 1996, Ives worked for several chefs with whom he credits instilling him with his core values, as well as the knowledge that cooking is a process of continual learning and refinement. This understanding, and an appreciation for hard work and discipline, earned Ives jobs in the kitchen of John Farnsworth (John's Island Club, Vero Beach, Fla.), Matthias Radits (The Breakers) and Peter Merriman (Merriman's Bamboo Bistro, Maui, Hawaii). Ives came to Kiawah from L'Escalier the AAA Five Diamond restaurant at The Breakers resort in Palm Beach, Fla.
Ives uses an eclectic mix of influences - ranging from North Africa to France, and from Spain to South East Asia.
Nathan Thurston
Chef de Cuisine - The Jasmine Porch
Nathan Thurston, Chef of the Jasmine Porch, began his career at the early age of fifteen as a culinary apprentice at Grace Ridge Resort (Morganton, N.C.). Chef Thurston later took his first sous chef position at Josephine's Cafe (Marion, N.C.) three years later. Thurston continued his quest for excellence by attending the highly acclaimed Johnson & Wales University with degrees in business and culinary arts. Thurston continued to strengthen his repertoire by working at the four star and four diamond Biltmore Estate (Asheville, N.C.). The White Horse Inn (Madison, WI), The Vineyards (Winston-Salem, N.C.) and The Atlantic Room (Kiawah Island, SC).
Chef Thurston is very active in the competitive realm earning the coveted Gold Medal at The Annual Adluh Grits Competition, the Le Grand Cuisinier Golf Medal, and three silver medals in American Culinary Federation sanctioned competitions. In addition to Chef Thurston's role at The Sanctuary he also teaches Culinary Arts at The Art Institute of Charleston.
Thurston brings all his array of experiences to The Sanctuary. He has been with The Sanctuary since the opening. "My philosophy is to strive for excellence in every aspect that I endeavor. Embracing this philosophy commits me to utilizing the edible gems of the Lowcountry in their peak of freshness."
Ben A. Randow
Sanctuary Banquet Chef
Ben Randow seeks balance when he’s cooking – whether it’s preparing Buttermilk Fried Smoked Duck or Charleston Shrimp and Grits.
Randow is a graduate of Johnson & Wales University in Charleston, SC where he was awarded Apprenti Cuisiner for classical French cookery. He started as a banquet prep cook in 1995 at Quail Run in Santa Fe, NM, and Cippriani’s and Unique Cusine in Baton Rouge, LA. Over the past six years he has worked at every kitchen on Kiawah. In 1999 he was promoted to Sous Chef at The Dining Room at Osprey Point, and in 2004 opened Jasmine Porch at The Sanctuary. His culinary skills helped Jasmine Porch to the award for Best Down Home Cookery by Andrew Harper’s Hideaway Report.
As a senior leader in the culinary department, Ben has the advantage of being the driving force for the Sanctuary Banquet Division.
Claire Chapman
Executive Pastry Chef - The Sanctuary
Claire Chapman has an aptitude for completing a fine meal with its final course – the dessert.
"I have wanted to be a chef ever since I made my first pastry, a bright pink birthday cake when I was six years old," explains Chapman, the Executive Pastry Chef at The Sanctuary at Kiawah Island Golf Resort, which includes The Ocean Room, The Jasmine Porch, Special Occasion Cakes and all Banquet events.
Chapman’s grandmother, a wedding cake maker, inspired her to become the advanced pastry chef she is today. Because her family has always worked in the restaurant industry, she was frequently exposed to a variety of culinary techniques.
Prior to working at The Sanctuary at Kiawah Island Golf Resort, Chapman gained experience as an apprentice with a classical French Pastry Chef, Jean-Luc Barrucand, and worked at the Mobil Five Star and AAA Five Diamond Woodlands Resort and Inn in Summerville, SC. She has nearly 12 years of experience as a pastry chef.
She has developed a Contemporary American style with Southern influences. Chapman strives to create a dessert with a consistent harmony of flavors and courses, because she believes this is the key to any great meal.
Jacob Fuhr
Manager and Sommelier - The Ocean Room
Utilizing passion, knowledge and experience in the aspects of fine wine and service, Jacob and his team deliver a memorable experience from start to finish. Fuhr has compiled a wine list of great measure, capturing some of the finest wines the world has to offer. His interests in the most recent technological advancements in wine production, have emerged in one of the most eclectic and diverse wine lists in the country.
Garth Herr
Sommelier - The Jasmine Porch
Garth brings both extensive wine knowledge and passion to the Jasmine Porch, The Sanctuary's Southern Style restaurant. He began exploring his interest in wine while working at The Commonwealth Club of Virginia. He later worked and trained at The Riverboat Landing in Wilmington, N.C. Garth worked at The Jefferson Hotel before moving to Kiawah Island Golf Resort in 2003. He is a Certified Specialist of Wine with The Society of Wine Educators and a certified Sommelier through The Court of Master Sommeliers.
