Oak Hill Cafe & Farm

At Oak Hill Cafe we are passionate about hyper-local ingredients, creativity, community, the environment and health. We believe the best way to prepare food is to start with the best ingredients. The Farm at Oak Hill is our organic permaculture no-till farm that also includes a mushroom farm with twelve varieties of cultivated mushrooms grown on our own white oak trees. Our farm managers are creating the "fertile soil chock full of life" from which we will derive our fresh produce. We will serve our customers fresh, interesting, great tasting combinations of food prepared in creative ways by our culinary team and in our R&D Space Lab. Our hope is that we will foster an atmosphere of comfort, enjoyment and learning for our community. Co-owned and founded by David Porras and Lori Nelsen. David recently moved to the US from Costa Rica, where he ran Aborigen, a highly popular farm-to table-restaurant. David earned a diploma in culinary arts at Latina University; was certificated in hydrocolloids and avant garde techniques at the French Culinary Institute in New York City; and obtained a Masters in cuisine, techniques, and produce from the renown Basque Culinary Center in San Sebastian, Spain. Lori is the former Laboratory Manager in the Earth and Environmental Sciences Department at Furman University. She has an MPH in Environmental Health Sciences/Toxicology from the University of California, Berkeley, and an MS in Analytical Chemistry from Furman University. She has a passion for baking and cooking, and has successfully melded her laboratory and kitchen skills. She has also attended the Seasonal School of Culinary Arts in Asheville, NC.