Meet The Team

A life-long passion for food and wine led owner and wine geek Jill Davis to open Toast in 2013. The idea behind Toast was to open a restaurant serving up food made from the freshest locally sourced ingredients, creative cocktails, and a diverse and edgy wine list, all in Cleveland's most happening neighborhood. In keeping with Toast's emphasis on letting the best ingredients speak for themselves, Jill stocks the bar and bottle shop with low-intervention wines, meaning wines that are grown in organic or biodynamic vineyards, use natural fermentation, and are fiddled with as little as possible. wine cellar with excellent examples of popular grape varietals, albeit usually with a twist, as well as those that might push you out of your comfort zone. She received her Level III Certificate with Distinction from the Wine and Spirits Education Trust (WSET). By day, she is an attorney with the Federal Public Defender. Jill lives in the Detroit Shoreway neighborhood with her dogs Alice and Rory, and a couple chickens at any given time.

Alex has honed his culinary style from his experience in various restaurants. Whether it was breaking into the industry as an intern at Gamekeeper’s Tavern, sous chef at El Carnicero, or kitchen manager at Crumb and Spigot, each opportunity was a chance to learn something new and become a more well-rounded chef. He now applies those techniques to create fresh, farm to table fare with local purveyors at Toast. Re-imagining classic dishes with local ingredients and flavors has become a passion of his, believing that food doesn’t have to be overly complicated to be enjoyed. Outside of the kitchen, he spends most of his time with his dog Freddie or playing the occasional video game.

Victor has more than 20 years of industry experience both front and back of house. His career started as a food runner for the Cleveland Athletic Club, eventually leading him to move to Austin where he graduated magma cum laude in culinary arts from the Texas Culinary Academy. Upon graduation he took over the kitchen at Fadó Irish Pub and oversaw food service for the largest and most successful St. Patrick’s Day event in Texas. Other opportunities had him running catering events for 1,500 people, cooking room service for patients at a children’s hospital and being the executive chef of a farm to table diner. When not working he enjoys spending time with his wife Catherine and their two cats, knitting, reading and an occasional fine whisk(e)y and/or cigar.

Willburr has been with Toast since August of 2021. He enjoys making drinks, playing video games and watching anime in his free time. When not at Toast concocting mixtures, he’s working towards his Masters of Arts in Songwriting at Berklee College of Music.