Matthew Ridgway of PorcSalt

Bio: 36 and single; grew up in Buckingham, now lives in another Bucks County 'burb, Perkasie.

Philly restaurant connections: Sonoma, Four Seasons, Lacroix.

What's new? PorcSalt, the French-style charcuterie (646-255-9312, porcsalt.com) he started 18 months ago, crafting cured meats, poultry and more for sale to restaurants and at farm and specialty markets.

From restaurant to charcuterie: Working steadily since age 18, he was feeling that the more he cooked, the further he got from food. PorcSalt "felt like therapy, really." He and his dad built the smokehouse together.

New York, New York: Worked for Joel Atunes at Joel's in Atlanta, then went with Atunes to reopen The Oak Room at the Plaza Hotel in New York City in 2008. "When you do an opening in New York, you work seven days a week."

Back home: The Philly area's "morphed into a really nice food scene [but] it's kind of shackled by the liquor laws in Pennsylvania" that make liquor licenses too expensive for smaller restaurants.

The F word: "The most annoying word is foodie. When people say, 'I'm a foodie,' it's a pseudo love of food, an over-intellectual talk of food. I love food, but I don't pontificate on it."

The celebrity chef culture: "It's good and bad. I highly respect Mario Bataldi. He's an amazing chef. Other people in the industry, they've gotten their fame just by stepping in a pile of s---."

Prized kitchen skill: "I don't like to compromise. I'm a very draw-a-line-in-the-sand person. For me, [food] is very personal."

Fave dish he cooks at home: "Omelets. I think one of the most difficult techniques to master is a good French omelet."

Cheesesteak wid? "Not at all. The best cheesesteak is at the White House in New Jersey. I detest the fact that Philly is known for cheesesteaks and pretzels."

Tattoos: "I have a couple. Not related to food. They're personal-experience tattoos - chapter-closers."

The next great Philly restaurant 'hood: "I love Fishtown and Port Richmond . . . You're going to see a lot more restaurants going that way, toward the Northeast. You can find some cool little spots that are pretty much turnkey operations."

Ten years from now? "I'd love to take a fast-food joint and make it into a restaurant/charcuterie. You could come in, it'd be kind of low-key, but you could get some really nice food."