After five years as a pastry chef at the Woodstock Inn and three as the Farm to Table manager at Billings Farm, Emery Gray will be returning to the Vermont culinary scene beginning Saturday as the new executive pastry chef at the Trapp Family Lodge in Stowe. Gray, who has been working in Boston for the past year, will be stepping into her new role just two days before the April 8 eclipse is predicted to bring swarms of travelers to the area. “What a way to start. It’s going to be incredible,” Gray told the Standard. “I’m ready to jump in with both feet. It’ll be just like the thick of foliage season.”
Gray’s love of baking began early. She knew she wanted to be a chef when she was in the third or fourth grade. By the time she entered high school, Gray had begun pursuing her dream in earnest, attending a culinary arts program for all four years. Courtesy of Emery Gray
Gray’s love of baking bloomed early, during long afternoons spent helping her grandmother create delicacies and share them with her family. “It’s very cliche, the whole ‘baking with your grandmother when you were younger’ [story], but it really sparked my love and joy for food,” said Gray. “I knew I wanted to be a chef probably since the third or the fourth grade.”
Gray began pursuing her dream in earnest long before most people have any notion of what their future careers might be, attending a culinary arts program for all four years of high school. By the time she graduated in 2007, Gray had decided to specialize in pastries and began studying at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, N.Y.
Throughout her journey, Gray has always strived for perfection; the slim margin of error inherent to baking is part of what drew her to it in the first place. “I’m such a rule follower in life that I really love the specific set of instructions and the exact way a recipe has to come together. You have to follow the ratios and the rules,” said Gray. “Pastry requires so much finesse and concentration to create, and I don’t [just want to create]. I want people to sit down and say, ‘That was the best that I’ve ever had.’”
After earning a bachelor’s in business management, Gray’s love of pastries eventually landed her at the Woodstock Inn in 2015. “I love the variety that a hotel/resort setting offers,” said Gray. “You get to challenge yourself in many ways and focus on so many different facets of pastry from making breads to wedding cakes.”
While at the Inn, Gray worked her way up. By the end of her tenure, she had designed the pastry menus for both the Red Rooster and the Tavern. “There were a lot of opportunities there to learn and grow,” she said, “and eventually getting to put my dishes out for people to enjoy was really wonderful.”
After half a decade, however, Gray was ready to try something new, so she hopped over to Billings Farm & Museum. In her new role, Gray oversaw the museum’s cheese production, expanded their food offerings, and taught cooking classes.
Emery hopes to emphasize the lodge’s Austrian heritage in her pastries, while also challenging the boundaries of what makes a traditional Austrian dessert. Courtesy of Emery Gray
Gray noted that she felt her position at Billings was pretty close to perfect. “Billings allowed me to use my business degree and grow their food programming from the ground up, which was an incredible experience because I got to be creative. I got to try things and while some things worked and some things didn’t, overall, I really liked it,” said Gray.
However, Gray’s life in Woodstock changed in the wake of the lawsuit filed in early 2023 by members of the Woodstock Foundation Board. Gray says she ultimately decided to leave Billings Farm. “Unfortunately, my moral compass directed me to take a step back from Billings Farm, because I didn’t exactly agree with what was going on,” said Gray. “The minute you lose trust with senior management, I think that’s when it’s time to go.”
Gray has spent the last year working at an Italian restaurant in Boston, called Fox & the Knife, as an assistant pastry chef. “It has been a wonderful year exploring Boston and getting immersed in the culture, creativity, and constant movement,” said Gray. “There are also way more young people in Boston than there ever were in Woodstock, which was kind of shocking at first.”
Although she’s thrilled to come back to the area, Gray did not expect her stay in Boston to end quite so soon. “Moving back to Vermont in 2024 was not on my bingo card at all. But lo and behold, I saw the job advertisement for the Trapp Family Lodge and decided to go for it,” said Gray. “I was very pleased and excited to be offered the position.”
Courtesy of Emery Gray
The Lodge, which was founded by the famed von Trapp family immortalized in the “Sound of Music,” maintains close ties to Austria, a relationship which Gray plans to harness. “The challenge and the fun part about that is how to highlight and honor the culture of Austria while also changing the way you think about what a Linzer torte can look like, and what its texture and flavor can be.”
In addition to maintaining some of the lodge’s oldest traditions, Gray is also looking to add a few things to their repertoire. “I’m definitely excited about possibly bringing a wedding cake program to the Trapp Lodge,” said Gray. “Currently [all] of their wedding cakes get contracted out, so being able to get in and introduce wedding cakes, hopefully in 2025, is something that I will strive for.”
Gray, in typical fashion, however, wants to ensure that any wedding cakes she has a hand in are miles beyond average. “Not only does the cake have to look great, but it also has to taste great,” said Gray. “I’ve had lots of wedding cakes that look amazing, but don’t taste so hot. If I can change the culture of wedding cakes, and bring it to Stowe, that would be really special and wonderful.”
At the cusp of such an exciting new chapter, Gray took a moment to emphasize the importance of relishing the moment. “As a chef, I just want to encourage everyone that wherever they go to eat, there’s someone creative behind the scenes putting their heart and soul into a dish that they create,” said Gray. “Someone’s hard work and creativity is on the plate in front of you and it can feel really special to slow down and just sit, enjoy, and savor.