Renee Touponce, Chef

With a passionate focus on local ingredients and a serious position on equality in her kitchen, Reneé Touponce is raising the bar on delicious food at 85th Day Food Community in Mystic, Connecticut, shining a light on ingredients and people. Reneé joined 85th Day Food Community in 2017, rising up through the kitchens of Oyster Club, Tree House, Grass & Bone, and Stone Acres Farm. In 2021, she was named executive chef of Oyster Club. She became executive chef of The Port of Call in 2022, the newest addition to 85th Day's portfolio, where her menu of port-inspired dishes pairs with inventive craft cocktails.

Reneé's multicultural background influences both her cuisine and her view of the world. Her upbringing is a blend of Italian and Puerto Rican, with memories of rice and beans on the stove, a lasagna in the oven, and the emphasis on the food from these two prominent cultures.

Her inventive, locally sourced, sustainable cuisine pays homage to the rich, coastal heritage of Southern New England, investigating the ingredients of her region of Mystic and surrounding communities. Reneé has cultivated relationships with farmers, artisans, and community members, deepening her commitment to sustainability and zero-waste cooking. She has a passion for butchery, dry aging, curing, sausage making, and patés, embracing whole-animal utilization to honor the interconnectedness of food systems and the hands that nurture them.

Reneé's accolades include a James Beard nomination for Outstanding Chef (2024) and Best Chef, Northeast (2023), as well as Chef of the Year at the 2022 Connecticut Restaurant Association Awards. With each dish, she celebrates heritage, sustainability, and equality, elevating Mystic's culinary reputation to new heights.