Martin Breslin brought his culinary expertise to HUDS in August 2002 and Executive Chef for Residential Dining. Breslin's international cooking experience and extensive background in top-tier dining services brought an elevated elegance and appreciation for diverse fare to the undergraduate menu. A native of Dublin, Ireland, Breslin cultivated his passion for food in his teens, when he worked summers as a cook at the Bayview Hotel, in Wexford. A graduate of the Dublin College of Catering, Breslin demonstrated his talents at restaurants, hotels and universities throughout the United Kingdom, in New York, and in Boston. He was named Restaurant Associates' Chef of the Year for 2001, an honor earned during his leadership of the food service at Harvard Business School. With HUDS, Breslin has won two American Culinary Federation (ACF) gold medalsÑin July 2003 team competition, and in individual competition in March 2004. In the latter competition, Breslin also earned top honors for NACUFS Region 1, and represented the region at the 2004 national convention, where he earned an ACF bronze medal. Breslin was named HUDS' Director for CUlinary Operations in March 2005, and leads menu development and delivery in all areas of campus dining.

A graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, Larry Kessel has over 19 years of experience in the foodservice industry, beginning as a rounds chef and pastry assistant in Chef Charlie Palmer's Aureole restaurant. After moving to Boston in 1992, Kessel opened some of Boston's best restaurants including Pignoli under Chef Lydia Shire and Metropolis for restaurateur Seth Woods. Kessel was the opening sous chef and pastry chef at Ambrosia on Huntington under Chef Tony Ambrose and also worked under Ken Oringer at Tosca. In 1997 Larry joined Restaurant Associates (R.A.) as the sous chef for the Harvard Business School. In 1998 Kessel left HBS to open his own restaurant, Atara Bistro in Brighton. After closing Atara in 2002, Kessel joined Harvard University Dining Services as the executive sous chef for residential dining and was promoted to executive chef in 2005. Chef Kessel has been featured on CNN's "On the Menu" and CNN Headline News as well as WCVB ABC-TV's "Chronicle" and "The Phantom Gourmet." He has also appeared in The Boston Globe, Travel & Leisure, Metropolitan Home, and Boston Magazine, Harvard Magazine.

Ludger Wessels is applying his 15 years of culinary experience in both Europe and America, to introduce a new echelon of excellence to Crimson Catering. Chef Wessels joined the Crimson team in the fall of 1999, and has been instrumental in elevating the operation's flair for savory seasonal selections. His menus, created for individual tastes and events, compliment the Harvard community's unique and broad customer palate. Chef Wessels trained at the elite German Hotel School, and worked his way up through the kitchens of numerous renowned German, Swiss and Boston hotels and restaurants. His specialties include regional German and French cuisine. He has worked in America since 1995, including a two-year turn at the Harvard Club. His experience there offered Chef Wessels the insight that allowed him to step into the Crimson Catering role and lead the culinary team in their efforts to become the preferred caterer on campus. Crimson Catering was the Grand Prize winner for the NACUFS Loyal E. Horton Catering Standard Menu contest in 2003. Chef Wessels is a two-time ACF gold medal winner, most recently at the NACUFS Region 1 conference.