Sara Crocker
Audio By Carbonatix
Crystal Kass, a three-time James Beard Award semifinalist, has departed Phoenix restaurant Valentine.
The pastry chef worked at the acclaimed Melrose restaurant and bar for four years, first as part of the pastry team before leading it. She crafted boundary-pushing plated desserts and inventive pastries, as well as breads, pasta and decadent baked-and-fried pretzels for the restaurant.
Kass was first recognized by the James Beard Awards in 2023, when she was named as a semifinalist. In 2024 and 2025, she was honored as a finalist in the coveted food awards, often referred to as The Oscars of food.
Now, Kass plans to launch her own bakery in Phoenix.
“That’s always been a dream of mine,” Kass says.
She’s still solidifying the details, but wants to incorporate her Mexican heritage and French pastry training into her next project. Kass was inspired by her travels to Mexico City, where she saw small bakeries with taut, focused menus.
“I would love to recreate something like that here,” she says.
Will she start selling at farmers markets or find a brick-and-mortar space? She’s not sure yet, but she’s shopping for equipment. The chef hopes to create laminated pastries and teacakes as part of her menu. Entremets, multilayered cakes encased in mousse, are another dessert she hasn’t seen as much around town that she’s considering.
Fans of Kass’ work know that nostalgic treats – like Choco Tacos and rainbow sherbet – get fresh, elevated remixes in her kitchen. Those kinds of whimsical desserts may be part of the forthcoming bakery, too.
“I have a lot of ideas. It’s really just trying to pinpoint what speaks to me,” she says.
The earliest Kass would open her bakery is 2026, though she doesn’t want to rush the process.
“I’m very much a perfectionist,” she says. “Before anything goes out to guests, it’s going to be a lot of R&D and trying things out.”
Allison Young
Acclaimed restaurant in transition
While Kass readies to start her next chapter, it marks the close of another for Valentine. Kass is the third notable member of Valentine’s team to depart this year, preceded by chef Donald Hawk, who retired from cooking in June, and co-founder Chad Price, who exited in January. Price and Blaise Faber founded the restaurant together in 2020.
Following Hawk’s departure, chef Nico Zades took over the kitchen. Valentine has not named a new head of pastry.
“At this point, we’re focused on supporting (the team) and giving them space to evolve the program collectively,” Faber shared via text.
When Kass submitted her resignation on Oct. 4, she gave a month’s notice, intending to leave in November. Instead, her resignation was accepted immediately, taking the pastry chef by surprise. Faber said the move was “a straightforward business decision.”
“Everyone here, myself included, has a lot of respect and appreciation for Crystal and what she brought to Valentine,” Faber said.
While the abrupt departure wasn’t the goodbye she had envisioned, Kass is looking to the future.
“The sky’s the limit for what I want to do,” she says. “I hope that people receive it and they appreciate it and they see where I’m coming from.”
