Since the tender age of 9, Chef Yann Chupin has been in the kitchen cooking, beginning with his loving father who was also an extremely gifted chef. At the age of 16, Chef Chupin landed an opportunity to work in a well known restaurant 25 miles away from where he grew up, in the beautiful village of Chalonnes Sur Loires in the La Loire Valley in stunning western France.

After gaining invaluable experience from his father and mentor, Yann decided to attend culinary school. He apprenticed under some of the best and most inspirational chefs in the industry from Jean Francois Pierce, Jean-Yves Gueho, James Baron and Louis Grondard. All were Meilleurs Ouvrier de France, or Master Chefs of France. Executive Sous Chef Chupin moved to the United States to continue his career with the Le Meridien Hotel in Boston. Chef Yann then moved on to Philadelphia, where he worked his way up to become the head Chef of a Philadelphia French restaurant, after only a year of service. At this point, he decided to relocate once again to work in the Caribbean, before returning to Philadelphia to fill the position of head chef for The Sofitel Hotel Company. As Yann continued in his career he made his way through various Philadelphia restaurants and hotels to gain experience and to gain knowledge of different environments.

It was in February of 2003 that Chef Yann Chupin had the opportunity to join The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company as the garde manger chef at The Ritz-Carlton, Philadelphia. After several exciting years in Philadelphia at the luxurious Ritz-Carlton, Chef Chupin decided to advance his career to the next level. He transferred to The Ritz-Carlton Lodge, Reynolds Plantation in Greensboro, Georgia where he stepped up to take on the task of becoming the hotel’s executive sous chef for the next 18 months. When an opportunity for growth emerged again in September 2008, Chef Yann Chupin transferred to The Ritz-Carlton, Pentagon City as Executive Chef of the hotel.

Chef Chupin currently resides in Springfield, Virginia with his wife Stephanie and two children Camille and Gregoire.

Recognized as one of the capital region’s rising gastronomic stars and exciting culinary talents, Amy S. Brandwein is now the executive chef for fyve Restaurant Lounge, a dynamic new restaurant located in The Ritz-Carlton, Pentagon City.

Chef Brandwein comes to The Ritz-Carlton, Pentagon City from her tenure with James Beard award-winning chef, Roberto Donna, most recently at the innovative Bebo Trattoria. Chef Brandwein launched the 200 seat casual dining hotspot in 2006, and oversaw all restaurant operations and the daily-changing lunch and dinner menu that focused on farm fresh ingredients, scratch cooking and a host of incomparable specialties.

Chef Brandwein began her professional culinary career in 2000 as a pastry Assistant for Chef Donna’s landmark Piedmontese Italian restaurant, Galileo. Her considerable skills, inspiration and dedication were recognized with subsequent promotions to Executive Sous Chef in 2003 and the top slot as Executive Chef in 2005.

Among the L’Academie de Cuisine graduate’s numerous awards and honors was being nominated as “Rising Culinary Star” for the Restaurant Association Metropolitan Washington’s 2007 RAMMY Awards. She has also been a featured competitor on Food Network’s wildly popular “Iron Chef America” series in a memorable challenge: Chef Donna vs. Chef Morimoto II. Chef Brandwein received the 2000 Volunteer of the Year Award from So Others Might Eat (SOME) and the James Beard Foundation Scholarship.

Chef Brandwein was born in and currently resides in Arlington, Virginia.