Kathy Casey Food Studios: Associates

Associate Bios

Ryan Magarian, Consulting Associate Mixologist
Keith Waldbauer, Consulting Associate Mixologist
John Casey, Business Partner
Travis Childers, Sous Chef
Jill Benson, Executive Assistant
Ann Manly, Development Associate

RYAN MAGARIAN
Ryan is a Consulting Associate Mixologist at Kathy Casey Food Studios^®. His unique “chef-like” approach to signature cocktails and beverage development has gained him recognition as one of America’s top master mixologists. Always pushing for both innovation and consistency, Ryan balances creative cocktails, consistent drink production, speed and well-honed technique to create distinctive bar programs nationally. Ryan’s cocktails have received mention in The New York Times, Wall Street Journal and Wine Enthusiast magazine. His work has also been noted in Cheers magazine, Seattle Magazine, Slammed magazine, Southwest Spirit, and the Seattle Times, and he has been featured in Food and Wine magazine as a top tastemaker.

KEITH WALDBAUER
Seattle bartender and cocktail and spirits writer Keith Waldbauer joins Kathy Casey Food Studios & The Liquid Kitchen as a Consulting Associate Mixologist. Keith has been written about and featured in Imbibe magazine as well as in the Seattle Times, the Seattle Weekly, the Seattle PI, and Seattle Metropolitan. A founding member and the current Vice President of the Washington State Bartenders Guild, Keith was recently nominated by StarChefs.com for their Rising Star Mixologist award. Read Keith’s commentary on spirits and cocktails at his blog, Moving at the Speed of Life; he also contributes to Slashfood.com.

JOHN CASEY
John is Kathy’s partner in business and life. He's been "in the biz" for 30 years, including instructor (restaurant operations), sales (liquor and restaurant), restaurant management, wine steward, and now handles the financials for all Kathy Casey companies. Most importantly, John is Kathy’s personal “taste-tester”! When asked about what he does in his free time, his response is “What time off?!” Needless to say, John keeps the same breakneck pace as wife Kathy. Truly a renaissance man—he does it all. John's favorite thing to cook is a “glass of red wine”—he's not the chef in the family! But when someone else is cooking, he loves to eat bacon and most pork products. But he eschews pork rinds!

TRAVIS CHILDERS
Sous chef for Kathy Casey Food Studios and Dish D'Lish Ballard, Travis Childers graduated from the Scottsdale Culinary Institute with an Associate's degree in Culinary Arts and his Le Cordon Bleu Diplôme. He worked at Sam Talbot’s Surf Lodge in New York and also stints in Arizona and Alaska before returning to Seattle. In his spare time, his hobbies include photography and playing the guitar.

JILL BENSON
A recent graduate of Tulane University with a degree in business management, Jill says that living in the Big Easy during college only solidified her taste for fancy cocktails and fantastic food. After moving back to the Northwest, Jill jumped at the opportunity to work with Kathy and combine her business knowledge with her love for the food industry. When she is not clip-clapping her high heels around the Food Studios, you will find her baking goodies at home.

ANN MANLY
Ann Manly is a Development Associate at Kathy Casey Food Studios. A culinary school graduate, Ann records development sessions and tests recipes for Kathy Casey Food Studios. She is also the in-house copy editor and custom recipe systems coordinator. Her attention to detail is flawless and her precision is crucial to the successful results of developed recipes. Ann is the woman we call when we need to pull the all-nighters!