The Owners
Bev and Myron Gottfried
Creating The Farm has been a labor of love. Bev and Myron combined their love of art and architecture with their talent for entertaining to create this beautiful award-winning venue.
They both attended dental school at Loma Linda in Southern California and in 1977 chose Asheville as a place to establish their dental practice and start a family. They purchased a farm just west of Asheville with enough space to own and breed horses. In the early 2000’s they were inspired to build a small space to rent out for Events. Over the last 15 years, the business has evolved to the current full-service venue.
Bev and Myron have two successful daughters (one is an ER doctor and the other is a partner in Myron’s dental practice) who live nearby. They’re thankful to have such a great team in place so they can ease into their retirement, visiting friends and family all over the country, and spend more time with their two grandchildren.
The Executive Chef
Mike Ferrari
Mike began his professional cooking career in his hometown, Atlanta, GA, in 2001 under the guidance of several classically trained European chefs and ACF competition-winning teams. His ability to thrive under pressure and his attention to detail allowed him to quickly gain recognition in kitchens full of young aspiring cooks. With over 15 years of fine-dining experience, he came to The Farm to build The Farm Kitchen’s culinary program. As the Executive Chef, Mike has used the same intensity and attention to detail, to quickly build our catering operation from the ground up.
Mike enjoys international travel and getting inspiration for his next menus. If you are a Phish fan – keep your eyes peeled. You might see him cheering on his favorite band.
Coordination Manager
Bethany Holder
Bethany received her degree in Psychology and Human Services from Montreat College. She’s served 5 years as a corporate event planner but has thoroughly enjoyed working at The Farm as a full-time member of the wedding industry since 2017. She loves the combination of creativity, customer service and organization. Can you think of a better description for a wedding coordinator?!?!?
Bethany and her husband just purchased their first home in West Asheville. When not working to get settled into their new home, she explores Asheville’s beautiful mountains, goes swing dancing with her husband and snuggles with her pup and a good book!
Wedding Coordinator
Erica Batstone
Erica discovered her love of the hospitality industry in 2004 and has been managing events since 2012. After completing her B.S. degree in Recreation Management at the University of New Hampshire, she moved to Asheville where she obtained her Special Event Certification and began her journey as an event coordinator. She has coordinated events in New Hampshire, North Carolina, Colorado and Australia. She loves using her creativity to transform the venue to meet each couple’s vision. Her greatest joy is building a rapport with clients that allows them to relax and fully enjoy their event.
Erica enjoys listening to live music, spending time on her stand-up paddleboard, hiking in the Blue Ridge Mountains and learning new styles of dance!
Wedding Coordinator
Jennifer Gladden
Jennifer was born and raised in North Carolina earning a Communications degree from NC State. After graduation she headed to NYC jumping into the hospitality business and then moseyed on to New Orleans where she fell in love with that fantastic city’s culture and food. Jennifer is passionate about local food and small business and ran her own event and catering business in Mississippi for four years. She recently moved with her 3 strapping boys to Asheville and we were lucky enough to add her to our team. As an event coordinator, Jennifer combines her relish for food and her head for details to delight her clients.
Jennifer loves all things outdoors and is often dancing at music festivals and exploring the amazing waterfalls in our beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains with her twin 7-year olds and their younger brother (he’s 5).
Beverage and Staffing Manager
Brad Scott
Brad is originally from Live Oak, FLorida and grew up exploring the Suwannee River. Early on, it was clear that he loved food so it was no surprise that he choose to get a degree from Keiser University for Culinary Arts in Tallahassee. When he finished he booked it to Asheville! Once Brad was of ‘legal age’, his passion for mixology grew and he started to experiment with his own cocktail recipes featuring local and seasonal ingredients. (Ask him about butterfly pea flowers. – psst – they make cocktails change colors based on ph levels.) Brad is easily one of the most charming folks on our team and explains that he honed his people skills working in restaurants, bars and wedding venues across the East Coast.
In his spare time, Brad indulges in inner introvert, spending time gardening, perfecting recipes, and giving his cats more snuggles than they would prefer. However, if you frequent Bent Creek or some of the amazing trails off of the Blue Ridge Parkway you might see him around!
Office Manager
Jean Muller
Jean grew up in Holland, MI right on the shore of beautiful Lake Michigan. She’s had the opportunity to live in many places including Florida, Texas and Arizona, but New Orleans is probably her favorite. The culture – the food – the people – AWESOME. She’s worked in a number of industries and has owned her own businesses including a high-end paper store and her own version of the Container Store. We’ve been lucky enough to have her at The Farm since 2008. With her fantastic organizational skills, she has The Farm office running like a top.
Jean’s an accomplished silversmith and makes amazing jewelry – ask to see some pictures!
Sous Chef
Daniel Coombs
Daniel is an Asheville native – a rarity now in our growing city. After high school, he caught the bug, cooking in small cafes while attending AB Tech’s Culinary School. Upon graduation, he moved to NYC and helped open a restaurant called B4 in the East Village. Folks started to take notice and Daniel was offered a job at The Nomad, a Michelin-starred restaurant owned by famed chef Daniel Humm. In 2015, he moved back to Asheville to help launch the Smoky Park Supper Club and worked there until his old AB Tech classmate, Mike Ferrari, offered him a position at The Farm.
Besides cooking, Daniel has a passion for music. He went to East TN State on a music scholarship and plays guitar and drums. While he loves music of all sorts, jam bands are his favorite.