Meet Lydia Howerton | Founder/Chef Good Eaters.

We had the good fortune of connecting with Lydia Howerton and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Lydia, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
I spent 15 years working as a private chef for high-net-worth families and celebrities in Los Angeles, CA. During the pandemic, a lucky job opportunity allowed my family and me to relocate to Denver, CO. As both a mother and a chef, I’ve spent countless hours sourcing ingredients, shopping, and cooking to expose my daughters to a wide range of flavors, textures, and ingredients to help develop their palates.

From my experience, exposing kids to a diverse selection of foods is key to expanding their tastes. But let’s be honest—it takes time and can be frustrating, stressful, and even wasteful. Even as a professional chef, I found it to be a real challenge.

When we moved to Denver, my husband and I were both working long hours. The meal delivery options we tried didn’t work for our kids—meals were often too spicy, featured odd sauces, or were sprinkled with things like cilantro that they just wouldn’t touch. Takeout didn’t help either, offering the same limited options: chicken nuggets, burgers, pizza, or mac and cheese.

I wanted healthy, family-friendly meals that were actually enjoyable for everyone at the table. That’s when the lightbulb went off—and the idea for Good Eaters was born.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I grew up surrounded by stunning nature, rolling hills, fragrant eucalyptus trees, and snacking on honey sticks at the farmer’s markets of Marin County, California. My brothers and I were always helping cook meals, set the table, wash dishes and engage as a family around meal times. We watched cooking shows after school on PBS and made countless attempts to perfect the Mrs. Fields chocolate chip cookie recipe.

After graduating from The University of Southern California and some time spent in a professional acting career, I fell into catering and personal chef services for high net worth families, celebs and dignitaries. At age 26 I was hired as a private chef for one of the most prominent families in the world – with no formal culinary education. Along with an amazing team of cooks we served multiple households every day and created beautiful parties for their family and friends. It was an honor to work with this family for 10 years.

After having my second daughter I had the good fortune to work with my soul sisters at Lady & Larder in Los Angeles as it expanded from a tiny kitchen to it’s first retail location, a shipping partnership with Williams Sonoma, and was featured in Oprah’s Favorite Things list of 2019.

The pandemic brought my family and I to Denver, Colorado to join the opening team of Clayton Hotel & Members Club in 2020. I spent 4.5 wonderful years serving as Director of Lifestyle & Events, Director of Operations and Club General Manager. At the beginning of 2025, I said goodbye to my beloved team and Members at Clayton to start Good Eaters.

To boil down what I learned in this journey so far is to listen to your intuition, act on your ideas but know that everything worth doing takes very hard work and be brave to jump at new opportunities. I moved states and started my career over at 40 years old! I realized along the way that my attention to detail was gift that I can grow into a career.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My culinary journey has been shaped by many mentors, starting with my mom, who always had my brothers and me in the kitchen. My dad, a spontaneous and creative cook and a generous host, also deeply influenced my love of food. I spent countless hours cooking and hosting family gatherings with my aunts and grandmothers, experiences that instilled in me the joy of feeding others.

Friends’ parents introduced me to new foods, restaurants, and cultures, broadening my palate and perspective. When I met my husband, I learned from the talented cooks in his family and had the opportunity to dine in incredible restaurants with them. As I began working in professional kitchens, I had the privilege of learning from some of the best chefs.

Standouts include Debbie and Lee Alpert and Matt and Alissa Joblon, who treated me to unforgettable meals in their homes and restaurants. I’m also deeply grateful to the Simms family for countless perfectly executed family dinners, and to my tribe of WAGS for the many collaborative meals and parties we’ve created together over the years.

Website: https://goodeaters.co

Instagram: @goodeaters.co

Image Credits
headshots photos by Lana Ellison @lanaellisonphotography