Ariana Quant

A pastry chef with over 20 years of baking experience, Quant began her studies at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York. Joining the San Francisco restaurant Farallon for her externship, she trained under James Beard-awarded pastry chef Emily Luchetti. Quant decided to round out her industry training with a degree in hospitality management from the University of Nevada.

While in school, Quant moved through some of Las Vegas’s finest kitchens, including Le Cirque and Osteria del Circo, refining her classic French and Italian dessert techniques. Post-graduation, she worked as a pastry cook at Hubert Keller’s Fleur de Lys/Fleur, eventually moving on to manage a team at Joël Robuchon and L’Atelier De Joël Robuchon while serving as the latter’s lead sous chef. In search of a more soulful life, Quant returned to Texas in 2015, eventually joining the Hai family as Uchiko’s head pastry chef in 2016.

In 2020, Quant was named the Executive Pastry Chef of all Uchi and Uchi-related concepts in the Hai Hospitality family: Uchi, Uchiko, and Uchiba. Quant considers mentorship and collaboration a key to leading her team and continues to elevate and innovate on the already notable dessert menus with her originality and exploration of flavor and texture.