Chef Isabelle cross

Isabel Cross is the Lead Chef Instructor for Mountwest Community and Technical College located in Huntington, West Virginia.

She started cooking at very young age in Caracas, Venezuela, but it was in her college years that she first had the opportunity to have her own business- a small “create your own pizza” place that helped her pay for her Bachelor’s degree from Universidad Catolica Andres Bello. Inspired by the food industry and the multicultural gourmet scene in her native Caracas, she decided to go to Culinary School where she graduated from the Centro Venezolano de Capacitacion Gastronomica in 1999. She moved to the United States where she earned her Master’s degree in Organizational Communication (specialized in conflict management) from Marshall University in 2005. She began teaching as an adjunct faculty member for the Culinary Arts program at Marshall in 2004. When Mountwest separated from Marshall University she accepted the position of associate professor with MCTC Culinary Arts Program. She and her husband, Mark Cross, currently own a restaurant located in the historic Hotel Frederick in Huntington, called 21 at the Frederick, featuring Modern American Cuisine. She has participated three times as Judge in the Prostart Competition, WV Chapter. She is a member of the Woman’s Club of Huntington, Junior Department. This fall she led a team in the first Heritage Farm Cast Iron Cookoff where her team won the “open fire” division first prize.

 

--Chef Isabel cross