Stir the pots. Meet the characters. Listen to the stories. Flavor Forays plans, organizes, and executes extraordinary culinary adventures that bring together the top leaders in the restaurant and hotel industry and suppliers for immersive, unforgettable experiences in food meccas all over the globe. Our goals are education, inspiration, and appreciation of culinary cultures.

Our partners, like our trips, are world class.

BARBARA MATHIAS, PRINCIPAL

Barbara Mathias excels as a connector of people and a facilitator of ideas. She is currently an independent brand marketing consultant, as well as producer of hospitality and food conference events. Until its closure in September 2014, Barbara was co-publisher/vice president of Food Arts magazine. Devoted to the quality driven concept of Michael and Ariane Batterberry’s Food Arts, Barbara helped launch the magazine in 1988, and played an integral role in its development and success over the ensuing 26 years.  

Previously Barbara had worked in the consumer goods advertising business in San Francisco. Barbara started as West Coast representative for Food Arts, moved shortly thereafter to New York City to become advertising director, and finally, became associate publisher/vice president in 2000.

BEVERLY STEPHEN, PRINCIPAL

As a veteran magazine and newspaper journalist, Beverly Stephen believes that timely stories, accurate reporting, and quality writing are the pillars of a successful publication. Most recently, she has been working as an independent journalist, hospitality consultant and conference producer. Until its closure in September 2014, Beverly was the executive editor of Food Arts magazine and FoodArts.com where she developed and led the execution of editorial strategy for this must-read insiders' resource. In addition, she developed programs, recruited speakers, and moderated panel discussions for leading industry conferences such as the Greystone Flavor Summit.

Prior to joining Food Arts in 1990, Beverly was an editor, reporter, and syndicated columnist for the New York Daily News and the San Francisco Chronicle. Coincidentally, one of her plum assignments at the Daily News was covering a groundbreaking culinary event showcasing American chefs that Michael and Ariane Batterberry staged to celebrate the first anniversary of Food & Wine magazine which they had recently founded. Neither suspected they would devote the next decades to chronicling the American food revolution at another Batterberry publication called Food Arts.