Executive Chef, Richard Balogh Owner, Chef, and Artistic Director of Refugio's Country Italian Cuisine. He comes by way of Cleveland, Ohio, where he grew up. He lives in a culturally diverse city. With a mother who was Sicilian and a father who was Czechoslovakian. Perogies and Pasta were a staple. Once he visited his cousins in Rome, Italy, at the age of 16, he was not the same. Years later, he would realize that is where he felt at home, welcome, understood. After attending the University of Cincinnati's Design, Art, Architecture, and Planning school and focusing on Sculpture and Interior Design, he moved to the great Northwest to settle in Bellingham, Washington. Falling in love with Mount Baker and the countryside, he chooses Deming, Washington, as his spot for Rifugio's. His culinary learning happened when he took to offering his favorite dishes and refining his technique. He hesitates to call himself Chef, as there are so many things to learn and so far to go. So, join him on his journey and on your own as you travel up Mount Baker Highway into the beauty of mountains and great food.