Behind the Scenes With Philly’s Gumbo Philosopher
Randy Rucker shares how getting lost, embracing change, and growing up on gumbo are inspirations behind his work.

Randy Rucker, chef and co-owner of River Twice. / Photograph by Mike Prince
Behind the Line is Foobooz’s interview series with the people who make up Philly’s dynamic bar and restaurant scene. For the complete archives, go here.
Randy Rucker is the kind of chef who goes with the flow. His bespoke approach to cooking is on full display at River Twice, where the menu is “subject to daily changes.” One day you might get a bluefin tuna toast topped with uni and shaved white truffle, and on another day, he’ll swap out the tuna with scallops and a spicy, briny house-made XO sauce. It’s all dependent on seasonality, availability, the unpredictable nature of the wild bacteria he wrangles to ferment sauces and pickles, and Rucker’s whims.
It’s reflective of his guiding philosophy — that everything in life, as in nature, is ever-changing. Ask Rucker the meaning of River Twice, and he’ll likely refer to the famous quote by Greek philosopher Heraclitus: “No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it’s not the same river and he’s not the same man.”
It seems to work for Rucker. His improvisational style has made River Twice one of the best restaurants in Philadelphia. Here, he talks about how he found his career by getting lost, the magic of gumbo, and what to expect from his upcoming project, Little Water.
I grew up in … a little town outside of Houston, Texas, called Tomball.
I get my style of cooking from … my mom. She is a great cook. I cook from the hip. I cook what I have and what’s available to me. I’m not a big planner, which is kind of River Twice as a whole. It’s an evolution. It’s a constantly moving force that’s ever-changing.
Before culinary school, I went to … Texas Tech.
I started my culinary career … out of nowhere. I was visiting my mom for the weekend in Foxborough, Massachusetts. I was driving around in a rented car and got lost. Around this time, Food Network was becoming popular, and The Emeril Lagasse Show was a thing. I remember him talking about Johnson & Wales University for some strange reason. So, I got lost on the harborside of Providence and came across Johnson & Wales, and just out of pure coincidence, I stopped, walked into the administration office, and asked them what it took to go to school there. And they were like, “Sweetheart, you pay your tuition, and you’re in.”
So I literally went back to my hotel, called the dean, and quit school at Texas Tech. And I started my first trimester in Providence, Rhode Island, like four days later. I didn’t know a soul there. I did my whole first trimester with just the backpack of clothes that I had originally taken up there.

Scallop xo on chawanmushi toast with Maine uni. / Photograph by Mike Prince
My first professional restaurant job was … at a bagel joint. I think I lasted two or three days because they needed me to be there at 3 a.m. and I was like, “Nope.” I also worked under Zach Granya, who is now the culinary director of White Dog Cafe. We were roommates and good buddies in Providence. We worked together at a place called Z Bar.
Before opening River Twice… I was the executive chef of a Relais & Châteaux property in Mystic, Connecticut. And when Amanda and I decided to do this, we jumped in face first.
We moved to Philly … in December 2018, got married in January 2019, and opened [River Twice] in October of that same year.
My favorite dishes to make are … things like grits and gumbo when we have one-offs that are tied to my heritage.
Little Water will be … opening in summer 2024. It’ll be a love letter to all the small bodies of water that Amanda and I have lived on. It’ll reflect our time on the Gulf Coast, in New England, and now in the Mid-Atlantic region. It’ll be seafood-focused, but I will draw from the Gulf Coast.
Diners can expect … River Twice and Little Water to be separate but under the same ethos and philosophy of sourcing, conservation, and sustainability. River Twice will remain the creative, modern, fixed menu; and Little Water will be the place that you come to once a week. We want it to be fun and approachable with an a la carte menu. A different vibe altogether, but lively and fun.

Raw oysters / Photograph by Mike Prince
Good food comes from … the people who raised it, are fishing for it, and are growing it responsibly and ethically. It all starts with them. I’m just the finished product. They’re the ones that put all the hard work in. My number one job is not to mess it up.
The biggest similarity between the Gulf Coast and Philadelphia … the crabs. And there’s a certain kind of grit to the people. I don’t want to say the wrong thing and piss people off.
Philadelphia deserves … a good bowl of gumbo.
The magic to gumbo is … the roux. But I think down south, a lot of that magic comes from the love that goes into it — the idea of cooking for people. It’s a feeling of hospitality; it’s a feeling of warmth, and everyone’s welcome.
My favorite culinary season is … late summer and early fall. That whole time is really nice because you get greens, mushrooms, tomatoes, and corn, and you start getting into more root vegetables, autumn squashes, and stuff like that.
Our signature move is … our larder. When I refer to larder, it is basically our pantry – all of our ingredients that have either come here and have gone through some sort of fermentation process, or pickling process, or a salting process to prolong the product itself.
How does Rucker’s collection of ferments set his food apart? Here’s what he had to say when we stopped by River Twice! Follow Foobooz on Instagram for more.