Leadership Team

Teddy Lamontagne moved up to Breckenridge in November 2020 to help open Rootstalk as the Bar Manager, and has since moved into his current role as the General Manager of Rootstalk Breckenridge. He was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, but has spent most of his life in Denver, Colorado. He moved to the state of Colorado in 1997, where his family opened a small restaurant in Broomfield. Since then he has lived and breathed hospitality. He helped operate multiple bars in Denver during his tenure, curating thoughtful & seasonal menus and running successful programs. Day in day out, he puts his best foot forward acting as the leader for the team at Rootstalk. By creating a desirable, safe, exciting work environment, and through providing the team with endless amounts of opportunities for education and personal growth. Curating people’s memories has been something that he takes a lot of pride in. These moments are something that he describes as, “Being able to hang his hat up on.” Whether it’s when he recognizes someone walk through the door by name that he met last spring, recalling what they ate and drank, or asking about how their most recent vacation to Puerto Rico was. The restaurant is more than just a drink and a meal for him. “It’s a special place in time, surrounded by the people you choose to be, doing the things you love to do. We should be more present in these moments with our friends, and family. They are the most important.” He has worked with Matt over the last 4 years, and Patrick on and off for the last 15 years. “It was the best decision I’ve made in my life to move to Summit County and be a part of this hospitality family. More than the job, due to this magnetic effect that Matt and Paddy have, I’ve been surrounded by some of the best people and made some of the greatest friendships in my life.

Austin Maki spent his childhood in Woodland Park a small mountain town in the heart of the Colorado Rockies. Starting his kitchen career at fourteen he was quick to find his passion. After working at scout camps for a few years he was promoted to kitchen lead at Wesminister high school and over saw their food service program. It was at that point that he left Denver to return to the mountains to hone his craft for three years at Colorado mountain collage. It was through this that he met chef Vawter and joined his team as the first line cook of Rootstalk. After seeing himself and the restaurant grow and rising through the ranks he is now the Sous Chef of Rootstalk Breckenridge. His goal is to provide a healthy, safe, and competitive working environment to push everyone to preform at their highest level.

Madison Church was born and raised in Naples, FL. She began working in restaurants as a teenager and soon found a passion for great food and beverage. It wasn’t long before she fell in love with wine. ‘It’s the cross section of my favorite things; art, history, science and travel in liquid form.’ After moving to Denver, CO in 2018 she began working with Chef Matt Vawter at Mercantile Dining and Provision. With the help of many incredible Denver wine professionals she fully committed to a life of swirling, sniffing and sipping wine and became a Certified Sommelier (CMS-A) in the fall of 2019. She has travelled to Tuscany, Piedmont, Napa and more striving to connect with the people and sites that produce the some of the worlds greatest wines. Now the Wine Director at Rootstalk and Radicato she can be found pouring delicious, thoughtfully made wines with a sense of place for our guests.

David Vizcaino, is a Colorado native from Greeley. His first aspirations professionally were in the medical field, but to help with financials he leaned towards food and beverage and would work shifts at a neighborhood restaurant. It didn’t take long to realize his passion for culinary arts. He continued down this path as a culinarian and decided to receive higher education at the Culinary Institute of Colorado Mountain College. After graduating in 2019, this new found passion has taken him places around the world and has lead to many opportunities. One of them being Fruition, of larger Denver. This is where he crossed paths with Matt Vawter and Cameron Baker and since then has been under their leadership and mentorship as a Sous Chef of Rootstalk. When he is not at the restaurant, David loves to rock climb, ski and spend as much time as possible outside or with great company.

Joe Zino grew up in Florida and worked every job in the front of house for the past 17 years. He started bartending about 10 years ago, and worked in the cocktail bars of Naples, Florida where he honed his craft. He learned from a wide variety of mentors from all over the sunshine state. He moved to Denver, where he connected with Chef Matt Vawter and has worked with him ever since. He jumped at the opportunity to move up to the mountains when Rootstalk opened. Joe loves to bring the sun and tropical vibes to Breckenridge through his cocktails, but also loves to take classic cocktails to the next level. “The service industry that we are in is a network of friends, family, and colleagues, there is always something to learn from someone and something to teach the next wave coming up. I’ve only really worked in restaurants, it’s what I love doing; making connections and cocktails. Come in to Rootstalk let us make you something.”

“Its’ about the food and the people”

Matt Vawter was raised in Summit County, Colorado where he was first exposed to the professional culinary arts as a high school underclassmen. Prior to his senior year at Summit High School Matt was invited to the Colorado Mountain College Culinary Apprenticeship Program in Keystone. Upon completion of the CMC program, and while fulfilling coursework for high school graduation, Matt was encouraged by mentors to explore beyond Summit County to gain experience in the burgeoning Denver restaurant scene. 2007 proved a pivotal year in which Matt joined Chef Alex Seidel’s culinary team at Fruition Restaurant. Alex and Matt proved powerful collaborators, leading Fruition to nationwide prominence while opening Mercantile Dining & Provision at Union Station in 2014.

Matt’s time at Fruition and Mercantile continued the development of his cooking style, honing a culinary ethos focused on intentional sourcing. He has since maintained a commitment to local purveyors, to utilizing the best ingredients available, and to nurturing relationships with Colorado’s farmers, ranchers, and artisans. The challenges of seasonality in an elevated mountain environment have expanded his relationships nationwide with a network of small, independent, select partners. Rootstalk highlights these efforts by using techniques to showcase these ingredients in a sustainable manner.

Despite the collective successes of Mercantile and Fruition, Chef Vawter felt the urge to return to his mountain roots and to raise his children at home in Summit County. In December of 2020 he opened Rootstalk in Breckenridge with the vision of providing an approachable, technique-focused, ingredient-driven dining experience to the local community. Rootstalk is crafted to feel like coming home, evoking Matt’s own experience of returning to the place that he loves dearly. Matt’s mission is to create an environment where restaurant professionals are empowered to develop the highest levels of service rooted in culinary expertise while also enjoying the mountain lifestyle. Rootstalk is where guests feel at ease, where they are welcomed and encouraged to enjoy the full experience of food, beverage, and hospitality.

Eighteen months after opening Rootstalk Matt and his partners opened Radicato in the heart of Breckenridge. Radicato speaks to feeling deeply rooted in a place, to embracing the energy there. Radicato shares the focus on sharing a story via the intention expressed in the cuisine, in the beverages and hospitality, and in celebrating the rich heritage of Italy. The restaurants are gathering places for the Summit community and for visitors to this special place, a memory in the making, a welcome home.

Milestones, Awards, and Accolades

2005 Completes CMC Culinary Apprenticeship Program

2007 Begins career at Fruition Restaurant

2014 Zagat 30 Under 30 Culinary Game Changers

2014 Eater Young Guns

2014 Opening of Mercantile Dining & Provision

2016 Mentor of the Year, ProStart

2017 Starchefs Rising Star

2018 Partner Alex Seidel wins James Beard Award for Best Chef: Southwest

2020 Opening of Rootstalk

2022 Opening of Radicato

2024 James Beard Foundation Semifinalist Best Chef: Mountain

Cameron Baker was born in Exeter, New Hampshire, where he spent the first twelve years of his life. In 2002 he moved to Summit County. In 2006 at the age of 15 his culinary Journey began working at Food Hedz World Café under chef David Welch. After spending 6 years in David Welches kitchen, he left to continue his culinary education and started attending Colorado Mountain College studying culinary arts, and hospitality management under Kevin Clarke. After graduating in 2014, Cameron moved to Denver. He joined Alex Seidel and Matt Vawter’s team at Mercantile dining & provision. During the 3 ½ years at Mercantile Cameron refined his craft and worked his way up to Sous Chef. After departing Mercantile, Cameron moved to Fruition Restaurant as Sous Chef where he continued to learn and develop as a chef under the guidance of Alex Seidel. In November of 2020, Cameron returned back home to Summit county to help Matt Vawter open Rootstalk as the Chef De Cuisine. Now Cameron is the Chef De Cuisine of both Rootstalk and Radicato as well as a partner in both businesses. Being a chef is challenging. It takes perseverance and determination. He believes it’s important to create an environment where everyone is passionate, excited, and constantly pushing forward to better their craft and provide a memorable dining experience for guests.

Patrick Murphy was raised in Broomfield, Colorado. After graduating from Regis University in Denver he spent 10 years working in various restaurants in the metro area. He joined Matt Vawter’s team at Mercantile dining & provision in 2016. Acting as bar manager for four years Patrick refined his craft as a bartender, honed in his style of hospitality and grew as an effective leader. Patrick moved to Breckenridge in November of 2020 to help open Rootstalk as the general manager with Chef Vawter and Chef Cameron Baker. He is now the Director of Hospitality for both Rootstalk and Radicato and is a partner in both businesses. Under his leadership the service teams provide a genuine, caring, and team oriented style of service and hospitality. Patrick believes restaurants and hospitality can provide a peaceful reprieve from the stresses of daily life. Creating memorable dining experiences for his guests motivates him to continue to seek excellency for his service team and himself.