Hannah Ryder

The Path

Hannah Ryder trained at The Culinary Institute of America before beginning a career built through a series of kitchens with distinct demands and temperaments. She went on to work as chef at Cafe Boulud in New York, NY, chef at Aquavit in New York, NY, chef at Evo in Maine, and chef at Chebeague Island Inn in Maine. Those roles map a route between polished city dining and the closer cadence of Maine kitchens, with each stop adding to the working vocabulary behind her cooking. Today, Hannah is Head Chef of Twelve (since 2022) and chef of Wildweed, continuing a career shaped by formal rigor, range, and steady progression through named rooms. The through-line is plain: training first, then accumulation, then a return to Maine as a place that continues to inform the work.

The Work Today

Ryder is Executive Chef at Twelve in Portland, Maine, United States. In that role, the separate parts of her background come together in one kitchen. She says so directly: “Now at Twelve, I meld my Maine upbringing with the diverse culinary experiences I've gained over the years.” That mix — home state, formal schooling, and kitchen experience across different settings — defines the way Ryder frames her cooking. At Twelve, the point is not to separate those influences, but to hold them in the same space and let each remain visible.

Signature

Hannah's signature dishes include Roasted Beets, Vinegar, Pistachio, Yogurt, and Beet Leather. The dish reads as a tight composition: grounded, bright, and controlled, with each element working in support of the whole.

In Their Words “I'm Hannah Ryder, Chef de Cuisine at Twelve, and my culinary inspiration stems from the rich food culture of my home state, Maine.” “Now at Twelve, I meld my Maine upbringing with the diverse culinary experiences I've gained over the years.”

Acclaim

Ryder’s progression is visible in the sequence of kitchens attached to her name: Cafe Boulud, Aquavit, Chebeague Island Inn, and then Twelve. That record of appointments functions as its own form of recognition, showing where her work has been trusted and in what company. The larger pattern is straightforward. The Culinary Institute of America supplied formal training; New York supplied early restaurant experience; Maine supplied the food culture that Ryder keeps returning to in her own terms. Those pieces together describe a chef whose work is built from movement, but remains tied to place.