Cara Piscitello

Cara is trained as an architect, receiving a Bachelors of Architecture from Syracuse University in 2001. Her course of study trained her mind and eye to recognize, appreciate and create beauty in our natural and built environments. During her time at Syracuse, Cara was fortunate to be able to study abroad, living in Florence, Italy for a year. Those months spent living like an Italian opened her eyes to a new way of looking at food. Italians shopped and cooked differently than Americans; shopping daily at the butcher, the cheese shop and the bread bakery. People were not filling carts with a week’s worth of groceries at a Supermarket but were instead choosing based on what was fresh and in season. These deep connections between food, place and season stuck with Cara long after she left Italy and have shaped who she is today.

After practicing architecture for nearly 10 years, Cara made a big career change in 2011 when she co-founded ACME Farms + Kitchen. For over six years Cara was immersed in the world of local food - developing recipes, curating products and learning about the abundant ‘foodshed’ of the Pacific Northwest.

Now, Good Living Retreats is the canvas on which Cara is able to express her passions and skills - as a designer, local food aficionado, avid cook, lover of travel and student of Italian language and culture.