Chef Bios
Chef Kenneth Williams
Chef Kenneth Williams approaches his menu of contemporary, yet inherently American dishes with energy and creativity, while honoring the simplicity of the ingredients. His connection to creating updated American classics comes from his own passion and love of developing flavors that blend the familiar with the unexpected. Kenneth’s love for cooking began as a teenager in the United Kingdom and continued to grow while he attended culinary school and worked as a culinary apprentice during this time.
Kenneth draws his inspiration from classic French cuisine while utilizing local, seasonal ingredients. He has ascended to Chef de Cuisine of Bank & Bourbon through hard work and displaying a talent for culinary creativity. In his role, Chef Kenneth Williams oversees the kitchen staff to ensure menu items are prepared and executed to perfection.
Prior to joining Bank & Bourbon, he worked at esteemed dining destinations such as Diplomat Prime, Juvia Miami, and Gotham Steak. In his spare time, he enjoys traveling and reading about historical events and figures. A graduate of Southeast London College, Kenneth looks forward to embracing the historical culinary influences and resources of the Philadelphia region and incorporating them into his dishes at Bank & Bourbon.
Pastry Chef Brenda Phe
Brenda Phe was born in California and raised in Philadelphia. Although she was born on the West Coast and raised on the East Coast she was raised to value hard work and passion for all her endeavors, chief of which is cooking and especially baking. Brenda developed a love for baking at an early age and always wanted to be in the kitchen helping cook food with her extended family.
By the time Brenda was a teenager, she began to focus more on baking and could be found making scratch cakes and cookies for family events. Suffice it to say, spending time in a crowded, noisy kitchen and creating beautiful and flavorful dessert items are Brenda’s favorite pastime. Hours upon hours were spent studying cookbooks and putting her own personal twist on recipes.
Brenda studied Culinary Arts at The Art Institute of Philadelphia and joined the Loews team as a Pastry Apprentice shortly after graduating in 2011. Brenda’s passion and joie de vivre for all things culinary carry over to other parts of her life. When she is not hard at work in the pastry kitchen, Brenda spends time mentoring her 10 nieces and nephews along with painting and enjoying her mom’s famous home-style cooking.