Other
Jenna Pegg
Pastry Chef
- Discipline
- Other
i. Biography
Pastry at Smyth in Chicago is treated as a built course, not a sweet addendum. In Jenna Pegg’s work across Smyth + The Loyalist, patisserie carries structure, texture, contrast, and restraint, with savory pastry and exact construction used to extend the kitchen’s larger language. The current program is developed in close collaboration with Chef Shields, with Pegg translating shared flavor ideas into composed, polished forms.
The Route
Serious pastry work is built on technical fluency, repetition, and a calm hand under service pressure. Jenna Pegg developed that foundation in Chicago’s most renowned kitchens, then served as Pastry Chef de Partie at Smyth in Chicago, a role inside a kitchen defined by precision, progression, and close attention to small gestures on the plate. Running pastry across two connected venues requires more than a dessert repertoire. Since 2021, Pegg has been Pastry Chef of Smyth + The Loyalist, shaping patisserie for both the fine-dining register of Smyth and the different pace and expectations of The Loyalist. The work has to hold its line whether it lands as a final course, a chocolate, a tart shell, or a frozen element.
The Work Today
The current patisserie structure at Smyth + The Loyalist is led by Pegg, who has held the role since 2021 and carries separate current titles as Pastry Chef of Smyth and Pastry Chef of The Loyalist. Collaboration with Chef Shields is central to the way the desserts are built. The work does not lean on sweetness alone; it uses bitterness, earthiness, fermentation, fat, and salt with the control usually associated with the savory side of the kitchen. Roasted Potato Ice Cream with potato skin caramel, raspberry butter, and black malt powders has been cited as an example of Pegg’s savory touches alongside Chef Shields’ sensibilities. Lemon Leaf and Beeswax Parfait has been cited in the same context, marking a pastry register shaped by aroma, restraint, and non-obvious sweetness. The egg tarts show how craft discipline can sit in a small format. The shells are made of pâté sucrée, hand-pressed between two metal molds, leveled, and baked until almost translucent and golden brown. That result depends on repeatable handwork: even pressure, clean edges, and close judgment of color. The stated direction remains tied to the team and the kitchen’s next stage. Pegg has put it this way: "I’m excited to see where Chef Shields will lead us next and how we will keep growing. We’ll keep pushing harder every day to continue being one of the most outstanding restaurants in the world."
Signature
Signature work includes Lemon Leaf and Beeswax Parfait and Barley Macaron with egg yolk jam. The range is not decorative; it shows how Pegg moves between aromatic, waxen suggestion and grain-driven concentration, using egg yolk jam to bring richness into a format often treated as delicate and primarily sweet.
Peer Recognition
Fermented Banana Custard appears with pine nut purée, braised kombu, pineberry syrup, and dehydrated pine cones. The composition moves through softness, salinity, fruit, and forest-floor texture, pulling custard away from the expected lane. Barley Macaron is paired with egg yolk jam, raspberry jam, barley-koji crumble, frozen yogurt meringue, and licorice syrup, setting tang, grain, fruit, and bitterness inside a precise pastry format. The same StarChefs selection included Black Walnut Chocolates made with 72% chocolate and nocino caramel. Profiteroles with miso-vanilla ice cream and caffe mocha chocolate sauce completed the set, linking classic pastry structure with the savory and fermented accents that run through Pegg’s work.
Profile updated July 2026
FAQ
Asked of Jenna
What does Jenna Pegg do now?
Jenna Pegg is Pastry Chef.
Where did Jenna Pegg work before?
Earlier in their career, Jenna Pegg worked at Chicago’s most renowned kitchens and Smyth.
What is Jenna Pegg known for?
Pegg leads patisserie programs for Smyth + The Loyalist.
