Denise Appel

Hailing from Glastonbury, Connecticut, Denise Appel has been wildly successful in her passion and vision as a chef. As co-owner and head chef of ZINC Restaurant and Kitchen ZINC, Denise credits her Grandmother Katherine for instilling in her true love for the art of cooking.

Chef Appel’s trademark cuisine features regionally farmed produce and cheeses, hormone- and antibiotic-free beef, veal and poultry and fresh and non-endangered line-caught fish. At her restaurants, Denise switches her menu every few weeks and during the summer season, she will spend mornings at the Farmer’s Market before deciding what meals to cook for the evening. Denise’s Farm-to-Table approach has earned her many honors, including Edible Nutmeg’s 2008 Local Hero Award for Chef/Restaurant, Best American Restaurant for ZINC winning Overall for CT and New Haven County from Connecticut Magazine, winning Runnerup statewide and Best for New Haven County from Connecticut Magazine.

Teaching and discussing food is another passion for Chef Appel. She introduced her Chef’s Table courses in 2008 to the public that focused on a different topic each month during the winter and spring and were received with sell-out attendance for each event. She also participates in regular community demos and guest appearances including CitySeed Farmer’s Market, WTHN, WFSB and the Delia Culinary Forum. Denise was also honored to be one of three New Haven chef’s asked to participate in New Haven’s First Iron Chef Competition.

A fan of Vietnamese-inspired cooking and, in her free time, art exhibits, metal work and painting, Denise is also regularly involved with charitable organizations in Connecticut and the surrounding areas. Outside of creating culinary masterpieces and broadening her cooking repertoire, you can also find Denise spending time with her three rescued pups or traveling the world, seeking inspiration for new dishes.

Keith Ruttan

Keith C. Ruttan grew up on a small farm in Kent, Ohio. His mother fed the family of 6 healthful homegrown meals: eggs and milk from the chickens and goats, produce from the garden and cider from the local orchard. "And that’s just the way it was," he remembers. His father helped foster a spirit for experimentation and adventurous eating. "My Dad and I spent a lot of time together in the kitchen eating things like sardines on crackers, brauchwager sandwiches and 7 year old Canadian cheddar."

Although well fed, Keith had no idea that he would one day be a chef. While studying at Kent Sate University he volunteered, apprenticed with a jeweler, waited tables, answered phones and changed majors repeatedly. When he started making salads at a local country club something clicked. He was curious and excited by the fast moving knives, the fire, and the food. After three years at KSU he dropped out, gave away all his furniture and moved to Vermont to attend the New England Culinary Institute.

In way over his head, but eager, Keith strove to learn as much as possible as fast as possible, "My girlfriend and I used to raid our respective roommates’ refrigerators and practice knife skills. It was pretty funny when they came home to find all the fruit and veggies cut into little flowers and footballs."

After culinary school Keith spent the next several years working seasonally as a line cook in Nantucket, MA, Rhinebeck, NY, Vail, CO and Cleveland, OH, and as a Sous Chef at the Edgartown Yacht Club on Martha’s Vineyard. He landed at ZINC in 2006. "I never intended to stay in New Haven for more than six months. I fell so in love with the ZINC family and Denise’s style that I just couldn’t leave."