The Leaning Pear is owned and operated by Rachel and Matthew Buchanan, both native Texans and graduates of Texas A&M University. Upon graduation, the couple relocated to Perugia, Italy, to explore the tastes and techniques of Italian cuisine while teaching English for a year.
They returned to the U.S. for Matthew to pursue a degree in Culinary Arts at the renowned Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY. While at the C.I.A., Matthew served as Sous Chef at the historic Bird & Bottle Inn in Garrison, NY, and was also featured in the March, 2003, issue of Better Homes and Gardens.
Post-culinary school, the two returned to the Texas hill country and worked alongside one another as Executive Chef and Assistant Innkeeper at The Inn Above Onion Creek for several years, all the while dreaming of and planning for a spot of their own.