Chef Bryan Voltaggio is giving back to the land that raised him. And he’s not just doing it with support of local farmers and purveyors, although he does that, too, with increasing passion and scrupulosity. Voltaggio is bringing all the benefits of his years of experience in some of the country—and the world’s—best kitchens back to the town, people, and the very soil that cultivated him.

And it’s apt, especially for a kid who grew up eating meals that included hand-picked produce from the family garden in his native Frederick, Maryland. Voltaggio followed his nascent passion for cuisine from its roots in a simple garden plot to the hotel kitchens where he worked as a sous chef and eventually executive chef—all by the age of 20. When he attended the Culinary Institute of America, Voltaggio got the kind of disciplined training that enabled him to harness this passion into a highly creative approach to cuisine.

When a stage in Manhattan finally introduced him to his future mentor, Voltaggio was on his way to becoming a great chef. And Charlie Palmer was there to help guide Voltaggio along the way. After hiring him as a sous chef at Aureole, Palmer sent the young chef to hone his skills in the kitchen of the three Michelin-star Pic in Valence, France.

Voltaggio continued working for Palmer for several years as executive chef at Charlie Palmer Steak before finally opening his own restaurant, VOLT, in his hometown. Voltaggio presents a menu that celebrates locality and seasonality through meticulous, innovative techniques. The result is both a culinary homecoming and a step forward in the advancement of modern American cuisine.