Marcie Barker is named director of the Culinary Vegetable Institute

The new director of the Culinary Vegetable Institute (CVI) should be a familiar face to many Northeast Ohio dining enthusiasts.
Marcie Barker recently joined the CVI team and said she loves getting to know the farm, the Jones family and the visitors to the institute.
"My career path began in New York City where my first job after college and culinary school in Paris was in the kitchen at The Quilted Giraffe, a now legendary restaurant that was among the first to break tradition in so many ways. From there I joined Danny Meyer opening the Union Square Cafe as sous chef with Chef Ali Barker. Two years later, Ali and I were married and began what has been our culinary and life adventure together," she said.
The Barkers opened Piperade in downtown Cleveland in the early 1990s, but sold it in 1995 to run a small bistro in Michigan while they raised two sons. They returned to the Cleveland area six years ago to take the helm at Radius in Chagrin Falls.
The Cleveland area is home to my family," Marcie Barker noted. "I look forward to my role here at the Culinary Vegetable Institute to reconnect with the culinary world both in terms of the Chef's Garden's reach to the most exciting chefs in the business, as well as the depth of authenticity of flavor and the integrity of product."
The Culinary Vegetable Institute and the Chef's Garden are at 12304 St. Rt. 13 in nearby Milan,OH.