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Casey Thompson, a renowned chef, reflects fondly upon her time at Cedar Hill Independent School District in the early 1990s.

Thompson, a Cedar Hill High School Class of 1996 Graduate, moved to Cedar Hill in 1990 from a neighboring community. She attended Permenter Middle School and Cedar Hill High School was part of the Drill Team and Red Army Marching Band.

“I have lovely memories of my time in Cedar Hill ISD,” Thompson said. “I had great teachers, coaches and faculty that I will remember forever. I am proud to have gone to school in Cedar Hill.”

Thompson, the runner-up on Top Chef: Miami in 2007, was the Executive Chef at Folktable in Sonoma, California from 2020-2024.

She’s now splitting her time between California and Texas and set to open a new restaurant called Duchess in Fort Worth, plus some culinary projects in the Texas Hill Country.

Cedar Hill High School didn’t have a culinary program when Thompson was in high school. She became interested in cooking through both of her grandmothers.

“I learned to appreciate cooking,” said Thompson, a University of North Texas Graduate “I did not know I wanted to be a chef until my mid 20s.”

Her first job was at The Mansion Restaurant in Dallas in the early 2000s, when Dean Fearing was the head chef.

“The Mansion was a great place to start cooking. I learned so much about how to navigate a hotel kitchen,” Thompson said. “They are big, bustling, and run full speed at all times. I am so glad I was a part of that era of the Mansion with Dean Fearing.”

Her first executive chef position was at Shinsei, also in Dallas. It was around that time that she became a contestant on Top Chef: Miami where she met Tre Wilcox, who also hails from the Best Southwest region.

Thompson went on to appear on Top Chef: All Stars, Top Chef: Charleston, Tournament of Champions V and Guy’s Grocery Games.

“I had never heard of Top Chef, but I went to meet them, and shortly after I was on my way to Miami,” Thompson said. “Top Chef opened many doors for my career. When I look back now, the list is so long for place I have cooked and people I have cooked for.”