Santa Barbara Chefs

Elena Shelton & Zola Phillips

Our food is created by two beloved members of our community — Elena Shelton and Zola Phillips — lifelong friends who grew up in Santa Barbara and bring their shared culinary training and love of holistic nourishment to TwoCan Retreats’ Santa Barbara weekend retreats.

All meals are prepared with seasonal, whole ingredients hand-picked from the Santa Barbara Farmers Market, with deep respect for the ways food supports both body and nervous system. Shared meals are an important part of the retreat rhythm, providing moments of slowing down to connect and be nourished.

Expressing love through food has shaped Elena from a young age and has remained a guiding thread throughout her work. After studying at Bauman College of Holistic Nutrition in 2013, Elena spent several years cooking at Spirit Rock Meditation Center before transitioning into personal cheffing, with a focus on nourishing families during the postpartum period. Through this path, supporting people with food during retreats and tender seasons — such as pregnancy and early postpartum — has become her specialty. She deeply believes in the grounding power of thoughtfully sourced whole foods and hearty meals to help us stay balanced through every stage of life.

Zola Phillips is a Santa Barbara born and bred chef. After many years of cooking around the country, she is happy to be back home in Santa Barbara. Cooking in the community she grew up in, Zola is reminded of the power of food to ground us in the seasons, connect us to the land and our community, and remind us where we come from. No matter what Zola is making, her approach to cooking is always grounded in season and place and oriented towards a goal of connection and nourishment.

“Food is an extension of our values and offers endless opportunity for beauty, play, exploration and connection.” ~zola phillips