i. Biography
Jonghun Won has built a career across pastry, bread, and ownership without treating those disciplines as separate lanes. Since 2022, he has been Pastry Chef, bread baker, and owner of Pavé NYC in Manhattan, a role that sits on top of formal training, pastry leadership, production bread work, and the operational demands of running a bakery. The through line is craft, not category: each step adds range, and the range is what defines the work.
The Path
The Culinary Institute of America gave Won the technical base that later showed up in kitchens where precision was nonnegotiable. He then moved into executive pastry roles at Jungsik Seoul and Jungsik New York in New York, where he remained until 2014. Those positions required consistency, control, and the ability to hold standards over time, the kind of training that shapes how a kitchen line is maintained day after day. Bread work added another layer in 2014, when Won became bread shaping and mixing assistant at Balthazar Bakery, a position he held through 2015. That shift placed him in the practical, repetitive work of production bakery life. The move from executive pastry leadership to bread production does not read as a change of direction so much as a widening of skill: pastry at the high end, bread at the bench, both under the same discipline. Since 2015, Won has been owner and baker of La Tabatiere in Closter, New Jersey. That long run gave his career a stable base and made ownership part of the craft rather than a separate layer above it. In 2022, he expanded again with Pavé NYC in Manhattan, where he serves as Pastry Chef, bread baker, and owner. Across both businesses, the work is organized around consistency, repetition, and direct responsibility.
The Work Today
Won’s current work is split between La Tabatiere in Closter, New Jersey, where he has been owner and baker since 2015, and Pavé NYC in Manhattan, where he has been Pastry Chef, bread baker, and owner since 2022. The practical center of that work is fresh bread baked throughout the day, a format that keeps production tied closely to service and demands attention at every hour. It is bakery work built around immediacy, not hold time. That emphasis on freshness fits a background formed by both pastry and bread. The cadence of the work depends on texture, timing, and repetition, with each day requiring the same standards to be met again. In Won’s hands, ownership is not detached from the bench; it is part of the same operation.
Signature
Jonghun's signature dishes include Jambon Beurre, Croque Monsieur, Vegetarian Caprese, and Green Tea Scones. Together, they sketch a menu that moves between savory comfort and polished baking, with each item carrying its own distinct register while still fitting within the larger identity of his work.
Acclaim
The clearest markers in Won’s career are continuity and responsibility: executive pastry work, hands-on bread production, and ownership across two current businesses. The path is cumulative rather than dramatic, with each role extending the one before it. From The Culinary Institute of America to Jungsik Seoul, Jungsik New York in New York until 2014, Balthazar Bakery in 2014–2015, La Tabatiere since 2015, and Pavé NYC since 2022, Won has built a career defined by discipline and range.
Profile updated July 2026
FAQ
Asked of Jonghun
What is Jonghun Won's current role?
As of 2026, Jonghun Won is Pastry Chef, bread baker, and owner.
Where did Jonghun Won train or study?
Jonghun Won trained at The Culinary Institute of America.
