Plating the Next Course

When Executive Chef Malyna Si arrived in Jackson to lead the culinary team at Hotel Jackson, she spent months getting to know local farmers and ranchers—touring their land and learning where her ingredients begin. Coming from Florida, where sourcing locally was readily accessible, she wanted to be boots on the ground in Wyoming, building relationships and understanding her ingredients as more than just a line on an order sheet.

“I love going out there, I love getting dirty,” she says. “I love learning about the entire process from the farmer, because once I know their story, I can tell their story.”

She has an innate curiosity about every step of the process, from how hay is seeded to how it’s baled for the cattle behind the beef she serves—so much so that she even tried baling once herself. She works closely with Silver Stream Farms—a women-owned and operated farm in Pinedale—for her hydroponic lettuces, microgreens, and berries, and speaks with fascination of Grazing Star Ranch in Freedom, Wyoming, where they have “the happiest cows you will ever see.”

Even after living in Jackson for almost two years, she’s still continuously looking for opportunities to learn more about the ingredients she’s using in the kitchen, and to make sure these farms are highlighted not only on the menu, but by training her waitstaff to be able to speak about the products to their customers. 

“We're just another restaurant, so what separates us? We can all get the same stuff from Sysco and just reorganize it however we want,” Malyna says. “But that's not why I'm in this business, that’s not why I do this. I do this because I want to source unique items, I want to expose people to these things that are so close to home.”

Finding Community in Jackson

Before joining Hotel Jackson, Malyna spent seven years at the Four Seasons Resort Orlando, where she was the only female chef leading a Michelin-starred restaurant in Florida. In her position at Hotel Jackson, she runs the Lebanese-influenced FIGS restaurant, and she will also be in charge of the hotel’s upcoming rooftop restaurant, as well as a new signature steakhouse. 

As Hotel Jackson undergoes a major expansion, these additional restaurants will be opened over the next year. The Spanish- and Southeast Asian-themed rooftop bar is expected to open this summer, with the steakhouse to follow by the end of the year. The steakhouse recently earned certification from Japan to serve authentic Kobe beef, becoming just the 10th restaurant in the United States to receive this rare distinction.

Growing up in a Southeast Asian family in Philadelphia, PA, Malyna developed a deep connection to the flavors of her heritage—one she was able to showcase as a contestant on America’s Culinary Cup, where a lineup of Michelin-starred and James Beard-recognized chefs competed for $1 million on Padma Lakshmi’s cooking competition.

On the show, which aired this spring, she frequently drew on dishes from her cultural background, highlighting the depth and range of her cooking in ways she hadn’t yet explored in a professional kitchen.

After the show began airing, Malyna says she had to adjust to a new level of recognition, especially in a town as small as Jackson. But what stood out most wasn’t the attention—it was the support. In a place where familiar faces cross paths daily, that recognition came with a sense of camaraderie, a shared pride among people who have all chosen to call this place home. It’s the same feeling that drew her to Jackson in the first place: a community of people who genuinely love where they live—and show up for one another because of it. 

“The community has welcomed me with open arms, which has been such a beautiful experience for me,” she says. In return, Malyna makes a point to show up—getting involved in local events, supporting fundraisers, and finding ways to give back. “I try to be a part of the community as much as I can,” she adds. “I feel like I’m home.”