NeWS - Archbishop Alter High School

Everybody’s Furniture. When Anne and tom married in
1998, tom immediately began assisting in the day-to-
day operations of Peristyle. As tom applied his business
skills and followed his intuition about the caliber of the
dining experience he wanted to fashion, Anne was garnering
numerous national culinary awards. she is one of
five chefs honored in 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2002 with a
James Beard Foundation “southeast Regional Best Chef”
nomination. Chef Kearney was awarded the title of “Best
Chef southeast” in 2002. Peristyle Restaurant prospered and
became one of the most famous destination restaurants in new
orleans and the united states.
In 2004, with Anne’s father suffering from Alzheimer’s, the
couple returned to Dayton to be near both of their families. they
established “two small tomatoes”, an all-natural garden cultivated
on the Kearney family farm in lebanon. Produce was sold
at area farmers’ markets, but the ultimate vision was to grow much
of the fresh produce used in the restaurant Anne and tom were
planning. their strategy was to control quality as much as possible,
from seed to serving.
In addition to helping her mother prepare family meals as a
teenager, Anne discovered her interest in food through her family.
her mother always had a garden and cooked what it provided.
Anne’s grandfather owned a lodge and he would entertain a different
cabin each night with one of his special meals; Anne watched
her grandfather and helped where she could while absorbing the
love and joy of preparing these meals. similarly, tom remembers
food-related family “rituals” as a young boy. each fall he would
wait for the gooseberry jam and other treats from the Western
slope of Colorado his grandmother sand would send. At Christmastime,
he would eagerly anticipate his grandfather’s gift of a
wheel of Maytag Bleu cheese. such early influences were part of
the reason the couple returned to Dayton to create a new casual
dining experience.
the new restaurant envisioned by Anne and tom was born
as Rue Dumaine in 2007, located in the south Dayton suburb of
Washington township. translated from French as “Dumaine
street”, the restaurant is named after the new orleans street on
which Peristyle was located. Rue Dumaine offers an unforgettable
experience in casual fine dining. the décor reflects a few of
the subtle French accents from new orleans, but the focal point
is a beautiful, ornate, hand-made walnut bar. Another beautiful
feature is the wine room, stocked with wines that tom chooses
from around the world, created by boutique wineries. With Anne
as Chef and tom as business manager, their vision for the restaurant
is to use quality local ingredients to provide an Americanized
version of a French bistro dining experience with warm hospitality:
“We consider Rue Dumaine an extension of our dining room at
home; it affords us the opportunity to entertain many more guests.
We thoroughly enjoy introducing your palate to a new and wonderful
flavor combination that you’ve never before experienced; or
sharing a certain subtle bouquet from a boutique wine that adds
layers of richness to the type of wine you ‘always order’.”
Anne and tom both comment about their love for the Dayton
and Alter communities. they share fond memories of their
days at Alter, crediting teachers such as Mrs. B.J. Wack, Mrs. Barbara
Bitticker and Mr. Grierson. Anne vividly remembers the day
when Mrs. Wack, her cooking class teacher, brought in a spaghetti
squash for class, thinking that it was “so cool seeing that for the
first time”. she goes on to say that Mrs. Wack had always been
supportive, checking up on her progress over the years. teachers
such as Mrs. Bitticker and Mr. Grierson (reading the Frontiersmen)
ignited tom’s love of reading. since returning to Dayton, Anne and
tom have reconnected with many of the Alter community, seeing
former classmates and forging new friendships. they also have
committed themselves to giving back to the community; the value
of service instilled in them by both their families and their Alter
education. Rue Dumaine has been involved in numerous fundraisers
for local hospitals, Camp emmanuel, the AIDs Resource Center
and Alter high school including the “Answering the Call” Capital
Campaign to name only a few. Chef Anne’s motto, “Food of love”
is certainly heartfelt as she, tom and Rue Dumaine continue to
extend that love to the Dayton community and Alter family.
Anne Kearney’s awards:
nominated for the James Beard Foundation’s Rising star
Chef Award, 1997
Featured with Peristyle Restaurant in Gourmet magazine,
1998
on the covers of “Food and Wine” magazine as part of the
“10 Best new Chefs in America” issue and “Wine spectator”
magazine as one of the top chefs in America, 1998
named “top Bistro/Casual Chef in America” by Robert
Mondavi, 1998
named “Best Chef/southeast” by the James Beard
Foundation, 2002
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TM