The Drifter is a culinary and event design company helmed by husband-and-wife duo Michael and Courtney Zentner, whose talents combine to create some truly spectacular events, high touch weddings and over-the-top dinner parties in Charleston and beyond. Michael has over a decade of experience in some of the best restaurants in the country, and approaches event menu creation with a chef’s perspective. Courtney comes to the table with many years under her belt at a big event firm - which included helping with the White House Christmas parties - and has curated a team of event designers who create bespoke and one-of-a-kind experiences for each client. Their repertoire includes regular installations at The Charleston Place, private dinners for national brands including loeffler randall, Veronica Beard, and Proenza Schouler, and memorable dinner parties. 

Michael Zentner

A 2001 graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, Zentner is a native of Newport, Rhode Island.  At the age of twenty-five, Zentner moved to Sun Valley, Idaho and became the youngest chef to run a Relais et Châteaux property.  By 2009, Zentner was overseeing one of Boston’s busiest restaurants, Gaslight Brasserie Du Coin.  Most recently Zentner opened restaurants Alta Strada and Conoshi for James Beard Award winner Michael Schlow in Washington, DC.  In 2016, Zentner was asked to return to the Aquitaine Group as Culinary Director, overseeing all nine restaurants in Boston.  In 2018, Michael and his family moved to Charleston, SC where he was hired as the Chef de Cuisine at Charleston Grill. He cofounded The Drifter in April 2020, when the covid pandemic began, initially selling focaccia by the loaf from his home in Wagener Terrace.

Courtney Zentner

Courtney Zentner, founder of The Drifter, spent her years growing up in New York and Asheville, North Carolina and has now settled in Charleston with her husband and young children. She has honed her craft of design, events and client relations in her fifteen years of experience in the industry. Courtney launched her career working as a designer for Rafanelli Events and has since collaborated with dozens of planners, designers and built her clientele nationwide. Her extensive experience includes design and coordination for the White House State Dinners, holiday design for the Obama Administration's White House and international clients including work at the Blue Mosque. Now running her own business with her husband, Courtney wears many hats including design maverick, production orchestrator and head of communications for the Drifter. Her design is tailored and curated, she is skilled at translating her clients fantasies into reality with a warm touch and five star hospitality throughout the process.