James Beard Award winner
Whang Suh
- Discipline
- James Beard Award winner
i. Biography
Whang Suh’s work at Hen & Heifer in Guilford, Connecticut sits inside French pastry tradition: disciplined lamination, careful finishing, and a steady hand on texture and proportion. As owner and pastry chef, Whang Suh has built the shop around exacting technique, where restraint does the work of ornament and each piece is meant to read cleanly from first glance to final bite.
The Climb
French Culinary Institute gave Whang Suh the structural base that French pastry demands: precision, repeatable methods, and standards that leave little room for drift. That training shaped the way Whang Suh handles flavor, texture, and presentation, with each element treated as part of the same technical brief rather than separate concerns. In 2013, Whang Suh became the owner and pastry chef of Hen & Heifer, bringing French pastry into a space he could define on his own terms. The role gave his craft a fixed address and a consistent point of view. Since then, Whang Suh has shaped the shop around quiet rigor, where shells, creams, and finishes are handled with the same level of attention.
Today
At Hen & Heifer, Whang Suh continues as owner and pastry chef, working in French pastries with the same focus that has marked his career from training onward. The daily rhythm of the pastry kitchen favors repetition, timing, and control, and Whang Suh uses that structure to keep the work disciplined without making it feel rigid. The finished pastries show that balance in practice. Technique is present, but not overplayed; pleasure is there, but never sloppy. In Whang Suh’s hands, French pastry holds to proportion and timing, with the kind of consistency that comes from close attention to detail.
Career - owner and pastry chef — Hen & Heifer (2013–present) Education: French Culinary Institute
Signature
Whang Suh's signature dishes include cherry blossom cream puff and a pastry whose name matches the measured elegance of his style. It reflects the same approach that runs through his work at Hen & Heifer: refined, controlled, and built on careful execution.
In Their Words “I always wanted to do something like this.”
FAQ What is Whang Suh's current role? As of 2026, Whang Suh is Pastry Chef. Where did Whang Suh train or study? Whang Suh trained at French Culinary Institute. What recognition has Whang Suh received? James Beard Award semifinalist, Outstanding Pastry Chef (2019).
