Nicole Krasinski

Coming Up

Technique developed early at Red Hen Bakery in Chicago, then took on scale at Tapawingo in Ellsworth, Michigan (2000–2004), where Nicole Krasinski served as Executive Chef and Pastry Chef. The next stretch at Rubicon in San Francisco (2004–2008), again as Executive Chef and Pastry Chef, extended that range and tightened the connection between precision and command. Across those years, the line runs through bakery discipline, savory leadership, and pastry work shaped by attention to texture, temperature, and timing. Today, Nicole is chef-owner of State Bird Provisions (since 2012) and co-owner of The Progress (since 2014), both in San Francisco.

Where They Are Now

At The Progress in San Francisco, Krasinski’s pastry work sits inside a broader kitchen language built on transformation rather than ornament. “At this point in our careers, the goal and the dream is to see our philosophies as integrated, no longer ours,” Krasinski has said, and that framing shows up in the way the menu is organized. Heat, salt, air, patience, and duration are treated as working tools, with fermenting and preserving folded into the daily structure of the kitchen. The result is a dining room that moves with control, and a dessert program that holds its place within that same architecture.

Signature

Nicole's signature dishes include ice cream sandwich and Glazed Pork Ribs with Scallions and Togarashi. The pairing points to a kitchen that can move between play and structure without changing register: one dish leans into compact, familiar form, while the other carries savory depth and a measured use of spice. The work stays controlled either way. Understated presentation does not mean loose execution; it means the balance has been decided carefully, with comfort and form kept in the same frame.

In Their Words “At this point in our careers, the goal and the dream is to see our philosophies as integrated, no longer ours.”

Honors

Nicole's honors include James Beard Award for Best Chef: West (2015).