Samantha Mendoza makes waves wherever she goes, having first gained national attention as a pastry chef star at Triniti in Montrose. She worked there for four years, constructing elaborate desserts out of delicate cake rectangles, neat quenelles of housemade ice cream and accents of colorful fresh fruit. This year, she was wooed away to Killen's Steakhouse, where she's been challenged with adding chocolate and pastries to a dessert menu of steakhouse standards like bread pudding. There, she continues to wow diners with creations such as chocolate mousse with raspberry jelly and passion fruit-mango sorbet.