JENNA HUNTER

CHEF

THIS IS JENNA.  She’s a native Oregonian, with family in the southern Willamette Valley, and has made her home here in McMinnville since 2010 with husband, Mike, and their fur babies, Margot and Audrey.

Jenna is a graduate of Western Culinary Institute/Le Cordon Bleu (2005) and spent the first half of her culinary career at McCormick and Schmick’s. In 2014, she joined the team at Community Plate as a line cook and pastry chef. Her time at CP followed a natural arc, as she proved herself at every position in the kitchen, becoming the sure, steady leader we know today. While her title reads “Chef”, Jenna is so much more to all of us… she jokingly calls herself the “Kitchen Mom.” Um… that’s not far off. She has an unwavering dedication to the restaurant and her team, leading with positivity and consistency. Her laugh is infectious and she cries at the drop of a hat, she prioritizes making everything from scratch, purveyors know her by name at the Farmers Market, and she is the most reliable person we know. Sounds like Mom to us. She leads by example and is exactly the person we want representing Community Plate and McMinnville. We can’t say enough about how proud we are of Jenna.

WHAT DOES JENNA HAVE TO SAY ABOUT WORKING AT COMMUNITY PLATE?  
“When I started in restaurants, CP was exactly the type of place I was looking for. I wanted to work at a strong kitchen in a great community, forming personal relationships with farmers, customers and especially my team. I love every one of them. I couldn’t do my job without them.”

FIRST COOKING JOB McCormick & Schmick’s | Tigard, Oregon
SPECIALTIES Pickles!
FAVORITE LOCAL RESTAURANT Anything on McMinnville’s 3rd Street
YOU CAN FIND HER Playing dice with Andrea
SPECTACULAR TALENT Thrift store bargain hunter
HOBBIES Traveling with Mike
LOVES Mike, Audrey, Margot