“Learn to taste, and be obsessed with it. I am the first to admit that my first thoughts are visual, and I spend a lot of time thinking about how to make products visually pleasing, but ultimately the success of a product lies in the taste.”

As the Lead Digital Chef for the Chocolate Academy Centers in North America, Chef Russ Thayer curates the curriculum and works alongside the team of chefs who contribute to its content. He specializes in modern confections based on traditional techniques, while also having a robust knowledge of pastry as a whole. Russ is also a classically trained savory chef. However, it is the technical accuracy and attention to detail in pastry and confections that fascinates him. Before joining the Barry-Callebaut group, he was the Pastry Chef at PreGel America. Prior to this he worked as a Pastry Chef for the Ritz-Carlton hotel group, and also held Pastry Chef positions in several prestigious private clubs. Russ is a graduate of both the Pastry Arts and the Culinary Arts programs at Central Piedmont Community College in Charlotte, North Carolina. Russ has won numerous gold medals in ACF-sponsored pastry competitions, and was a finalist in Cacao Barry’s L’Art du Chocolatier Challenge 2012. Chef Russ joined the Chocolate Academy™ Chicago team in 2014 to further his dedication to research and innovation. In 2018, Chef Russ relocated to Montreal, Canada to become the Lead Chef for the Chocolate Academy™ Online. Russ has been published in many industry publications throughtout his career, recently featured in So Good.. magazine editions #19 and #23. His strong desire to work with the best pastry chefs in the industry continues to push him forward.