Chef
Mike Friedman
- Discipline
- Chef
- Based in
- Washington DC, Washington DC, United States
i. Biography
In Washington, D.C., Mid-Atlantic produce and Italian memory set the grain of Mike Friedman’s cooking. At The Red Hen, where he has been Chef/Owner since 2014, the work runs through seasonal, Italian-influenced plates; at All Purpose, his pizza dough rests through a three-day fermentation before a gas deck oven gives it a thick, bready, crispy crust that can still hold the fold.
The Estate
Friedman was born in Westfield, New Jersey, and studied at Boston University before training at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York. His early kitchen work included a prep cook role at Mon Ami Gabi, a sous chef post with Lettuce Entertain You, and time as a cook at Zaytinya. To widen the frame, he worked stagiaire turns at Incanto in San Francisco, Lucques in Los Angeles, Vetri in Philadelphia, and Scarpetta in New York. Back in Washington, D.C., Proof gave him an executive sous chef post and a lasting discipline: simplify technique so seasonal ingredients shine.
In the Cellar
Since 2014, he has been Chef/Owner at The Red Hen in Washington, D.C, where Italian influence is interpreted through Mid-Atlantic ingredients. “We went with Italian because it’s my favorite thing to eat. I grew up in New Jersey in a Jewish household within an Italian community, so it became comfort food to me.” In 2016, he founded All-Purpose Shaw in Washington, D.C, and has been chef at All Purpose since that year. The chronology continued with All-Purpose Capitol Riverfront in Washington, D.C, in 2018; in 2023, he founded Aventino Roman Cucina and AP Pizza Shop in Bethesda, Maryland. He also founded Delikatessen in Washington, D.C, and holds the Chef/Owner title at Aventino in Bethesda. In 2025, the RAMMY Awards named him a Chef of the Year finalist.
The Bottlings
The pizza work is tactile and slow: a three-day ferment, a gas deck oven, a crust thick and bready enough to feel substantial, crisp enough at the surface, resilient enough to fold. He has described the aim plainly: “I wanted to figure out a way to create a restaurant that was a love letter to my youth growing up in New York and New Jersey, and what better way to convey that than deck oven-style pizza?” That deck oven-style pizza draws directly from his New York and New Jersey youth, and from East Coast pizzas and slice shops. At Aventino, Tonnarelli Cacio e Pepe is built on careful emulsification and a custom black pepper blend.
Profile updated July 2026
FAQ
Asked of Mike
What style or method defines Mike Friedman's work?
His work includes seasonal, Italian-influenced cooking with Mid-Atlantic ingredients at The Red Hen, plus All Purpose pizza dough made through three-day fermentation and baked in a gas deck oven.
What are Mike Friedman's signature releases or dishes?
His named signatures include All Purpose’s deck oven-style pizza and Aventino’s Tonnarelli Cacio e Pepe, built on careful emulsification and a custom black pepper blend.
What is Mike Friedman known for making?
He is known for deck oven-style pizza tied to New York and New Jersey youth and East Coast slice-shop traditions, as well as Italian-influenced cooking in Washington, D.C.
