Dustin Valette
Chef/Owner
THE MATHESON, VALETTE RESTAURANT, AND VALETTE WINES
Chef Valette’s culinary passion has brought him far from Healdsburg, and then right back to it. The Matheson is his second restaurant in downtown Healdsburg. He is also the owner of Valette Wines.
After culinary school and exploring kitchens in San Francisco, Chef Valette landed at Thomas Keller’s one-Michelin-star Bouchon in the Napa Valley. He continued to expand his palette at Hokus at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel Honolulu. When Chef Valette came back to the Bay Area, he returned to the place he ended his stage, Michelin-starred Aqua in San Francisco, finally as executive sous chef under Laurent Manrique.
Chef Valette helmed his first kitchen as Executive Chef at VOX Restaurant & Wine Lounge in Henderson, Nevada. After a year and a half, he yearned to return to the wine country and start his family. Naturally, he came back Healdsburg, where his great grandfather Honoré settled some 100 years ago.
Here he began his six-years as Executive Chef at Dry Creek Kitchen. At Dry Creek Kitchen, Chef Valette developed an admiration for growers and artisans into practices and relationships that continue today. Working with winemakers to create inspired pairings quickly became a hallmark of his tenure.
In 2015, Chef Valette and his brother Aaron Garzini opened Valette in downtown Healdsburg, a locals’ favorite. From the beginning, Chef Valette was able to develop a business model, in which giving is part of profiting, and he strongly believes that supporting community is essential to success.
In September 2021, the doors of The Matheson opened and have already deepened Chef Valette’s commitment and connection to Sonoma County and its tremendous community.
2
Restaurants Founded
19
Years of Service
2021
Chef of the Year
