About Us

Andrew John Schudlich
Chef/Proprietor

Andy was raised in Union Lake, MI. Many an afternoon was spent fishing with his father and brother or picking berries with his mother and aunt. It was this time spent in the outdoors that laid the foundation of Andy's interest in food. The cultivation and harvest of local and regional food also captivated Andy from an early age, and fostered an interest in how to find and prepare food for friends and family.

Andy attended Orchard Lake St. Mary's, and then continued on to earn a B.A. in Studio Art from Mercyhurst College. His professional cooking experience began with many short stints in professional kitchens. Andy learned production cooking at the Blue Bird in Leland, MI during collegiate summer breaks from 1991-1995. Following graduation, Andy moved to Leelanau County permanently, where he continued to cook at the Bluebird Restaurant in Leland. Andy then refined his skills at the Riverside Inn in Leland, MI, where he was given the opportunity to explore his own ideas with food as well as catering.

Travel through the Caribbean, Mexico, North America, South America and Central America inspired Andy. It was during these travels where he learned that the highest quality ingredients are those inherent to each region. He experienced how straightforward cooking techniques applied to these regional ingredients is really what identifies "local cuisine". This underlying epiphany drove him to seek out friend and fellow cook Cammie Buehler to apply this philosophy to the resources of the Leelanau County.

Forming Epicure Catering gave Andy and Cammie the opportunity to express their culinary vision of "Contemporary Local Cuisine". A secondary benefit became a chance to employ friends with exceptional culinary vision and a special connection with Leelanau County. After six years of hard work with Epicure Catering, Andy's goals and dreams are coming to fruition.

Epicure has the great honor of showcasing the best products and talents in the area. With the simple coupling of these two elements and a belief that letting the best shine through with minimal guidance, the treasures of Leelanau County return in abundance. The fine land, resources, and people of Leelanau County have held Andy's awe and attention for 16 years and should continue to do so for years to come.

Andy resides very happily in Lake Leelanau.

Camilla Jeanne Buehler
Chef/Proprietor

Cammie was born into a family of food lovers in 1976 in Cincinnati, Ohio. Cooking was far beyond a means to an end in her household. Countless hours were spent in the kitchen with her mother, aunt, and sister and she came to think of the kitchen as a place of creativity and refuge. Her cooking career began as a dishwasher in a fine dining restaurant, where she became drawn to the energy in commercial kitchens. Cammie continued to work in various kitchens throughout high school and college, including La Petit Pierre in Cincinnati, OH and the Riverside Inn in Leland, MI. Upon graduation from Ohio University, Cammie's degree in outdoor education took her to Lake Tahoe, California where she pioneered a women's-specific snowboard instruction course at Squaw Valley.

Of course, living in California- the cradle of the local food movement in America- fueled her interest in professional cooking. By day, Cammie made tracks all over Northern California's best terrain. By night, she labored under the sound tutelage of Douglas Dale at Wolfdale's. Trained in Japan, Chef Dale's clean, healthy and respectful approach to food captivated the young pupil. It was Douglas's example of being an athlete, family man, chef, teacher, restaurateur, and coach simultaneously that solidified Cammie's view that the life of a chef could be fulfilling and diverse. While in Tahoe, she also worked as a baker at Plumpjack's Squaw Valley Inn, and as a private chef. In search of new terrain on the mountain and in the kitchen, Cammie then spent a winter working under Stephanie Krizman at the Windy Ridge Bakery in Park City, Utah.

After 8 years in the West, the pull from the Midwest was too great to ignore. It was time to go home again. She reconnected with her friend and fellow cook, Andy Schudlich. Inspired by the abundance of local foods and anxious to facilitate commerce in Leelanau County, Epicure Catering was born in 2003.

In 2005, Epicure Catering moved into their state of the art commissary at Cherry Basket Farm in Omena, MI. It was also in 2005 that Cammie and Andy began their relationship with renowned chef Mario Batali. Mr. Batali hosts a dinner at the Cherry Basket every year and utilized Cammie and Andy as cooks on the photo shoot for his recent cookbook, Italian Grill.

When Cammie isn't cooking or cruising the local farms and farmers markets, she is on her road bike touring around Leelanau County or walking her dogs, Abe and Owen on North Beach, probably with a mug of French press coffee in her hand.

Matthew Lynn Peschel
Sous chef

Matt was born in 1979 and raised in idyllic Leelanau County until his graduation from Leland High School in 1997. He began his college career at Michigan State University before finishing up at the University of Michigan with a B.S. in Secondary Education with concentrations in Environmental Science and Psychology.

During the catering 'off months' he lives and works in Chicago teaching Technology and Computer Science at PowerHouse High School. Matt enjoys cruising Leelanau County and the city on his BMW motorcycle, coaching soccer, reading true crime and positively impacting the future through his work with kids.

Matt also worked through the ranks of Leelanau County local restaurants starting at age 15 with his uncle at the then Leelanau Country Inn, later at The Cove, The Bluebird, The Leland Lodge, and finally too the Riverside Inn before beginning his work with Epicure Catering.

Matt appreciates the creativity of and draws inspiration from the challenges inherent working with food as an artistic medium. He grew up 'close to the source' gardening and canning with his mother and grandmothers within a family and community of fishers and hunters. His first jobs were working illegally young on local farms. Matt loves being part of team of like-minded 'foodies', enjoys the pace, independence and responsibility of the catering lifestyle and finds every event that when you work with friends and love what you do that work is much less work and much more than just work.