Alice Bergen Phillips, the cheesemonger at Via Umbria, originally hails from Chicago, IL. Alice grew up in a family who loved to cook, eat, and travel, and spent much of her young life eating her way across England and France. After receiving her degree in International Politics and French from Bates College, Alice moved to DC to pursue a career in politics, only to discover that she enjoyed the world of specialty food much more than her chosen field of academic study. Upon this realization, Alice delved into the worlds of coffee, tea, wine, and ultimately, cheese. Alice now runs the Via Umbria cheese counter, bringing the best cheeses from far and wide to Georgetown.

Bill Menard is a recovering attorney who left private practice in Washington, DC over a decade ago to pursue his passion for all things Italian. With his wife, Suzy, they founded Bella Italia in 2003, a retail store in Bethesda, Maryland that specialized in artisinal products from Italy, including gourmet foods, hand painted ceramics and luxury housewares. In 2014, they relocated and rebranded, and are now Via Umbria in Georgetown, D.C. Bill and Suzy travel to Italy frequently to find new products to import and to broaden their understanding and appreciation for the Italian culture and lifestyle. In 2008 they purchased a villa in Umbria, just outside the village of Cannara, as a rental property. Those in search of la dolce vita should visit Via Umbria at 1525 Wisconsin Ave NW, or www.viaumbria.com.

Elsa Bruno is an employee of Via Umbria and a recent Graduate of Scripps College for Women in Los Angeles, where she studied Art History and Italian Studies. She enjoys balancing healthy vegetarian Italian food with jars of Nutella as big as her head. You can reach her at elsa@viaumbria.com.

Lindsey Menard is a born and bred Washingtonian who enjoys good food, great wine, and bad jokes. After earning a degree in English and Education at Bucknell University, she moved back to DC to teach English and throw the occasional dinner party in her backyard. These days you will find her organizing the events in Via Umbria's Demonstration Kitchen and Cafe, talking incessantly about her dog, and writing one too many groan-worthy puns on social media.

Scott Daniel Weiss, the butcher at Via Umbria, is a Northern Virginia native who, a few years ago, realized he liked eating more than almost anything else. He had this realization for the first time while studying abroad in South Tyrol, Alto Adige, in the land of speck. But, he continued to have this realization over and over again while plowing through an undergraduate education in North Carolina, home of the best barbecue on planet Earth (he's pretty sure this is a scientific fact). After finishing a year in Scotland learning the simple joys of not wasting off pieces of meat (really, haggis is delicious, people), Scott returned home to a brief career in food service and aggresively teaching himself how to cook, with no small amount of help from his foodie folks in his off hours. All this drove Scott step by step towards going whole hog and learning butchery. Now he's happy to bring you the best meats money can buy, cured or raw. Stop by the Via Umbria meat counter and plan some dinner!