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Caroline Schiff
James Beard Award winner
- Discipline
- Other
i. Biography
Food & Wine Best New Chef, 2022, is the distinction attached to Caroline Schiff, and it reads as a direct result of the pastry work she was doing at Gage & Tollner in Brooklyn, New York, in 2021. The desserts there leaned into whimsy without tipping into sentimentality, using nostalgia as structure rather than decoration. The line on the plate was clear: comfort handled with control.
The Path
University of St. Andrews sits at the start of Caroline Schiff’s training, and the influence shows in a sensibility that treats familiarity as a craft problem rather than a shortcut. Old-school diner breakfasts and pastries shaped that sensibility early, giving her work a practical register rooted in everyday appetite. By 2021, as executive pastry chef at Gage & Tollner in Brooklyn, New York, those references had become legible in the room: dessert built from comfort, but finished with discipline.
The Work Today
Whimsical desserts are the specialty most closely associated with Caroline Schiff, and the work carries a plainspoken kitchen logic. She has said, "I'm a hot drip coffee kind of gal." She has also said, "I'm a wine gal through and through!" She has also said, "Well, welcome to my kitchen. I live in Brooklyn in a giant pantry." She has also said, "I love the casualness of it." Taken together, the lines point to a pastry practice that keeps things lived-in, informal, and useful to the room it serves. The strength of that work is in its balance. The desserts read playful, but the structure beneath them is the thing that matters: restraint, care, and an understanding of what makes a sweet course land cleanly. That is what gives her pastry its staying power, and why the name Caroline Schiff now carries weight in the category.
Signature
Caroline's signature dishes include coconut sheet cake, Coconut Layer Cake, and Broccoli Melt.
In Their Words “I'm a wine gal through and through!” “I'm a hot drip coffee kind of gal.”
Acclaim
Caroline's honors include James Beard Award nominee for Outstanding Pastry Chef (2022) and Food & Wine Best New Chef (2022).
Profile updated July 2026
FAQ
Asked of Caroline
Where did Caroline Schiff train or study?
Caroline Schiff trained at University of St. Andrews.
What recognition has Caroline Schiff received?
James Beard Award nominee for Outstanding Pastry Chef (2022).
