Our Chef

photo by Lisa Stagnitti

Chef Tom Bivins translates his love of Vermont’s local farms, seasonal produce, artisan cheeses and wild foods into recipes and menus based on freshness, flavor and inventiveness. Now, the 2011 Vermont Chamber of Commerce Chef of the Year brings his passion to Crop Bistro and Brewery in Stowe.

A native of Louisiana, Chef Tom arrived in Vermont in 1990 to attend the New England Culinary Institute. After graduation, he became chef for the Inn at Shelburne Farms in 1993. In 1997, he opened The Pitcher Inn in Warren and served as Executive Chef; during his tenure, The Pitcher Inn received the prestigious Relais et Chateaux designation. He then became Executive Chef at The Old Tavern in Grafton. He joined the education team at New England Culinary Institute in 2003 and served as Executive Chef from 2004 to 2011.

His passion for seasonality has been showcased at The James Beard Foundation, the Epcot Center Festival of Food and Wine at Disney World and the Smithsonian Institution’s Food Culture USA, where he highlighted wild foods along with Les Hook and Nova Kim of Wild Gourmet Foods of Vermont. In 2006 and again in 2008, he was a delegate to the international slow food gathering, Terre Madre, in Turin, Italy.

He is currently board chairman of Vermont Fresh Network, an organization committed to fostering relationships between farmers and chefs. He’s also a member of the Chefs Collaborative, Slow Food USA and a past Vermont Chapter chair of the American Institute of Wine and Food. He is a founding board member of the Gay and Lesbian Fund of Vermont, and currently serves on the Scholarship Committee of the New England Culinary Institute.