"A harp strums softly in the background as plates bursting with color and loaded with cuisine that would please the angels are gently placed before you. You may think you're in heaven, and in a way you are. You're in the Ventana Room at Loews Ventana Canyon Resort." So wrote Kathleen Allen in the Tucson Citizen. In an elegant room that offers a window, literally, on the glittering lights of a distant Tucson and the close-up beauty of Arizona's Sonora Desert, you'll dine on sumptuous reinterpretations of the classics. Think salmon Wellington with herbed basmati rice, garlicky escargots encased in a gossamer potato tower, or dry-aged sirloin with Roquefort-chanterelle bread pudding. Who is creating this celestial fare, this "absolutely fantastic" food, as Zagat (which rated the Ventana Room number one in Tucson and the entire Southwest in 1999) put it?

Meet Jeffrey Russell, a graduate of top-flight resorts around the country. Before coming to the Ventana Room, he worked under Alex Stratta at The Phoenician in Scottsdale, Arizona, and later ran the kitchens of the resort's Terrace Dining Room and Monk Room. Russell also spent some time on the East Coast, at the Hilton at Short Hills and the Rosemary and Sage Restaurant, both in New Jersey. He got his culinary start as a youth at the Gateways Inn & Restaurant in Lenox, Massachusetts, under Gerhardt Schmidt. The two-time Olympic culinary team captain encouraged Russell to enroll at the CIA for formal training.

In the stunning Ventana Room, Russell upholds a tradition of award-winning dining. The restaurant holds four stars from the Mobil Travel Guide, two DiRoNA awards, a 1999 Top Five Restaurants in Tucson nod from Tucson Lifestyle, a top Southwest ranking from Condé Nast Traveler, and recognition from the Wine Spectator for one of the best wine lists in the world. As Cara Rene wrote in a review for Southern Arizona Online, "The upscale dining room at Loews Ventana Canyon Resort has once again provided a perfect experience."

Tired of casual Fridays? Parched for luxury? Join us chez Beard for an elegant evening with Russell. No water bottle or sun block necessary.