A four-part journey from a chance invitation to a restaurant built around live fire, community, and family.
Kinsey’s Perspective
Britt had been invited by Chef Jonathan Sawyer to participate in the inaugural SVCI Food & Wine Festival, an event dedicated to raising scholarship funds for aspiring culinary professionals in the Wood River Valley. Together, they auctioned several private dinners during the festival, and over the following summer, we returned to Sun Valley to fulfill those experiences.
Those visits introduced us to an incredibly passionate community of food lovers and gave us the chance to experience what can only be described as one of the most beautiful places to spend a summer. With every visit, we found ourselves falling more deeply in love with the Wood River Valley—its people, its landscape, and its unmistakable sense of community.
"Maybe we should open a restaurant here."
At first, I thought she was crazy.
We had been searching for the perfect home for our first restaurant together and were seriously considering opportunities across the country. Opening a restaurant in a mountain town immediately brought questions to mind. What about supply chains? Seasonality? Staffing? Surely this would be an operational challenge.
But by our second trip back to the Valley, my perspective had completely changed. I couldn’t imagine a better place to pursue our dream than a community we had so quickly come to love—a place where we wanted to put down roots, build our lives, and become part of something larger than ourselves.
We will always be grateful that the Sun Valley Culinary Institute brought us here. Karl Uri and the entire SVCI family welcomed us from the very beginning, and through them we discovered a community that shares our passion for hospitality, craftsmanship, and bringing people together around the table.
Britt’s View
Kinsey thought I was crazy, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that there was something special waiting for us here. I couldn’t stop thinking about what we might be able to build together.
After our final SVCI Food & Wine dinner, we flew back to New Jersey with our minds racing. We spent countless hours dreaming and asking ourselves difficult questions. Could we truly find our place in such a close-knit community? Would we be welcomed? Could we create a restaurant where people would gather, celebrate, and make memories?
We had both built successful careers in hospitality, opening and operating restaurants for other people, but this would be different. This would be our first restaurant as owners. The excitement was undeniable, but so were the doubts. There were countless unknowns, and with them came plenty of fear.
In search of clarity, we called our friend, Chef Maneet Chauhan. She offered us the advice that ultimately changed everything:
"Jump in and then learn to swim."
She was right. If we waited until we felt completely ready, we probably never would have taken the leap. Encouraged by Maneet and supported by so many generous chef and restaurateur friends who believed in us, we made the decision to bet on ourselves. We packed up our lives, moved to Sun Valley, and set out to build the restaurant we had always dreamed of creating.
We made the Wood River Valley our full-time home in February 2024 and spent the next year bringing Fiamma to life. As the restaurant slowly took physical shape, so too did our vision for what we wanted it to become.
From the beginning, we had a few non-negotiables. We knew Fiamma had to be centered around live-fire cooking. We wanted a completely open kitchen where every guest could feel connected to the energy of the culinary team, and we envisioned a chef’s counter that would place diners in the heart of the action.
Above all, we wanted to recreate the feeling we both grew up with—the warmth of gathering in our families’ kitchens, where the glow of the hearth, the aroma of sauce simmering on the stove, and the sounds of laughter and conversation made every meal feel like a celebration. Those memories became the foundation upon which Fiamma was designed, shaping not only the restaurant’s architecture but the way we cook, serve, and welcome every guest.
Building a restaurant is rarely a straight path. Between selecting finishes and fabrics, making countless design decisions, and navigating the inevitable surprises that come with construction, we devoted every spare moment to becoming part of our new community. We participated in fundraisers, cooked private dinners, attended local events, and accepted every opportunity to connect with the people who make this valley so special.
Along the way, we met talented hospitality professionals, local artisans, farmers, ranchers, winemakers, and neighbors who would become instrumental in Fiamma’s story. Those relationships shaped our team, influenced our menus, and deepened our understanding of what it means to be part of the Wood River Valley. By the time our doors opened, Fiamma was no longer simply a restaurant we had built—it had become a reflection of the community that had embraced us. The spirit of the Wood River Valley is woven into the very fabric of Fiamma, and it continues to inspire every decision we make.
This chapter is still being written—quite literally. We’re just as excited as you are to share what comes next for Fiamma and for us here in the Wood River Valley. Check back soon for Part Four — Kinsey
Because the best stories are the ones we get to share.
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– Kinsey & Britt
