All food is fantastic,” says culinary guru Kent Rathbun of the Dallas, Texas, area. We caught up with him in April as he prepared lunch at the Masters Golf Tournament in Augusta, Georgia. “It’s a matter of respecting it and stepping it up,” he says about developing a sense of culinary creativity. “If you do it right, and you care for the food, and you put love into it, the food comes out better—doesn’t matter if you’re frying chicken or making a pizza, it just comes out better. I always try to make it as great as I can. Always seek out the best ingredients and take care of them.”

Rathbun’s roots are firmly anchored in culinary arts and food. At the age of nine, he discovered his passion for culinary creativity and began learning the skills and techniques needed to provide the foundation for chef stardom. He rose through the ranks of some of the world’s finest kitchens, starting as an apprentice at La Bonne Auberge, a five-star French restaurant in Kansas City, Missouri, where Rathbun gained experience working with high-end ingredients and learned the art of perfect preparation.