The artisans of taste.

James Beard Award winner

Kristi Brown

Seattle, Washington, United States

From dish pit to catering line, Kristi Brown built That Brown Girl Catering in 1996 and kept the work anchored in Seattle soul food. The throughline is clear across the…

Bartender / bar director

Lana Shemonaeva

New York City, New York, United States

Looking forward to what’s ahead. ## The Essentials Managing Partner is the working role that puts Lana Shemonaeva inside the daily order of Lady Bird, where rhythm, identity, and…

Pastry chef

Laura Sawicki

Austin, Texas, United States

James Beard Award semifinalist in 2013, Laura Sawicki has built a career in Austin, Texas, that reads like a study in steady ascent: disciplined training, a string of defining…

Michelin-starred chef

Laurent Gras

Paradise, Nevada, United States

## Coming Up Technique starts with the school and the room: École Hôtelière, Nice, France gave Laurent Gras the formal base, and the kitchens that followed sharpened it. At Lucas…

Winemaker

Lisa Hinton

Clarksburg, Maryland, United States

Lisa Hinton has built a career around steadiness more than display, and around place more than flourish. As winemaker at Burnt Hill Farm in Clarksburg, Maryland, she works with…

Winemaker

Louis Essa

Meursault, France

Louis Essa leads Domaine Buisson-Charles in Meursault, France, a role that places him at the center of a village whose name and reputation are the wines it yields. There is…

Pastry chef

Luis Robledo

Mexico City, Mexico

Ganache is where technique shows. The bowl has to sit at the right temperature, the chocolate has to hold its sheen, and the cut has to stay clean. Luis Robledo built his work…

James Beard Award winner

Lydia Shire

Boston, Massachusetts, United States

Lydia Shire’s cooking at Scampo in Boston is built on range, but the range is disciplined. Italian at its core, the work moves through the Mediterranean and Middle East with…

James Beard Award winner

Maneet Chauhan

Nashville, Tennessee, United States

"I’ve worked to adapt my food according to the environment that I’m in." For Maneet Chauhan, the line describes a method more than a mood: read the room, then cook to it. That…

James Beard Award winner

Marc Meyer

New York City, New York, United States

His cooking leans toward brightness and clarity, with Mexican flavors handled without ornament but with depth: fresh snap, traditional warmth, hand-ground masa, and the steady…

James Beard Award winner

Mark Gaier

Ogunquit, Maine, United States

Mark Gaier’s work reads as a steady widening of the table: one restaurant becomes a body of rooms, each carrying the same disciplined hand. Across Food Road, The Arrows in…

Winemaker

Mark Schabel

Temecula, California, United States

Mark Schabel led winemaking at Ponte Winery in Temecula, California. ## Coming Up Winemaking through Mark Schabel’s early path was built on formal study and a broad enough range…

Winemaker

Matt Courtney

Healdsburg, California, United States

In Healdsburg, the work starts with Russian River Valley Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Those grapes ask for patience, precision, and a light hand; they reward attention without fuss…

James Beard Award winner

Matt Lee

Carson, California, United States

“I want to make sure the product is fresh and that I’m not using a product that is being overfished or is hurting the eco-system in any way.” That ethic sits at the center of Matt…

James Beard Award winner

Matt Vawter

Breckenridge, Colorado, United States

## The Climb Training for Matt Vawter runs through Summit High School, the Colorado Mountain College Culinary Apprenticeship Program, and Colorado Mountain College. ## Today Since…

Winemaker

Mattia Antoniotti

Bramaterra, Italy

Mattia Antoniotti’s work is anchored at Antoniotti Odilio in Casa del Bosco, Sostegno, Piemonte, Italy, where vineyard and cellar remain the same point of reference year after…

James Beard Award winner

Maura Kilpatrick

Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States

Maura Kilpatrick is the Pastry Chef and co-owner of Sofra Bakery & Cafe in Cambridge and Allston, Massachusetts, a role that places her at the intersection of craft, leadership,…

James Beard Award winner

Melissa M. Martin

New Orleans, Louisiana, United States

## The Path Training at Loyola University New Orleans sits at the start of Melissa M. Martin’s record, but the work before and after school shows the fuller shape of the craft:…

James Beard Award winner

Michael Schlow

Jamestown, Rhode Island, United States

Chef and managing partner at Beech in Jamestown, Michael Schlow has built a career around the directness and structure of Italian cooking. Raised in Brooklyn, New York, he brought…

James Beard Award winner

Michael Symon

Cleveland, Ohio, United States

## Coming Up The early training is plain in the record: St. Edward High School and the Culinary Institute of America gave Michael Symon the structure, technique, and repetition…

Winemaker

Michele Faro

Solicchiata, Italy

## Coming Up At Pietradolce in Solicchiata, Castiglione di Sicilia, Michele Faro works as owner/founder, while his family’s Sicily-based plant nursery keeps him close to the…

Winemaker

Mitja Lavrenčič

Podraga, Slovenia

## The Climb Benchmark Sauvignon from Vipava Valley sets the frame for this work, with the estate described as a source of Slovenia’s best Sauvignon. In that context, Mitja…

James Beard Award winner

Natalia Vallejo

San Juan, Puerto Rico

Natalia Vallejo’s work at Cocina al Fondo in Santurce, Puerto Rico, is built around a clear brief: use the kitchen to strengthen the island and its people through gastronomy. In…

Sommelier

Natalie Johnson

New York City, New York, United States

## The Climb Training at University of Colorado Boulder gave Natalie Johnson a base, but the working education came on the floor and in the bottle list: line cook at Matteo, cook…

James Beard Award winner

Nicholas Bognar

St Louis, Missouri, United States

## Coming Up Nicholas Bognar’s work is organized around a three-part brief: owner of Indo, chef-owner of sado, and chef-owner of Pavilion. The through line is not just cooking,…

Winemaker

Nikolaus Saahs

Wachau, Austria

Nikolaus Saahs is the current owner and winemaker of Nikolaihof in Wachau, Austria, a role he has held since 2005. The estate’s working logic is tied to place, and third…

Winemaker

Odilio Antoniotti

Bramaterra, Italy

The estate profile for Odilio Antoniotti in Piemonte, Italy, is built around a narrow and useful set of facts: proprietor, place, and wine production under one family name. Casa…

Winemaker

Patrick Hardiker

Tynong, Australia

Patrick Hardiker owns Cannibal Creek Vineyard in Tynong North, Australia, where ownership, winemaking, food, and hospitality sit under one practical standard: the work has to hold…

Master Sommelier

Patrick L. Houghton

Houston, Texas, United States

## The Essentials Wine direction, at the restaurant, is built around the list itself. Patrick L. Houghton treats that list as working material rather than a finished object:…

James Beard Award winner

Paul Berglund

Forest Hills, Michigan, United States

## The Path At University of Michigan, Paul Berglund built the academic foundation that later carried into the line. The defining stretch came at The Bachelor Farmer in…

James Beard Award winner

Paul Smith

Charleston, West Virginia, United States

## The Path Technical training at Culinary Institute of America and Culinary Institute of America, Greystone campus, gave Paul Smith the base that many restaurant careers lack:…

Winemaker

Phil Gregory

Ensenada, Mexico

## Career Phil Gregory’s work sits in the practical overlap of cellar, vineyard, and ownership. Trained at La Escuelita, he brought that foundation into Vena Cava, where he has…

James Beard Award winner

Renee Touponce

Mystic, United States

The first lessons in dough and filling came from home practice in Torrington, Connecticut, where Renee Touponce made empanadas with her mom. That work matters as technique before…

Chef

Richard Rea

New York City, New York, United States

## Coming Up Technique and service both run through Richard Rea’s early path. Training at The Art Institute of California-San Diego (2010) and California State…

James Beard Award winner

Rick Moonen

Paradise, Nevada, United States

Rick Moonen now serves as Master Development Chef for Perry's Restaurants, a role that suits a career defined by precision, momentum, and a deep respect for the ingredients that…

James Beard Award winner

Rob Tod

Portland, Maine, United States

Rob Tod founded Allagash Brewing Company in Portland, Maine in 1995. He wanted to begin with one beer only, and he said, “I wanted to start with one beer, and one beer only: a…

Restaurateur / hotelier

Robert DeNiro

Houston, Texas, United States

Robert DeNiro’s hospitality profile is built on a single dated ownership credit: in 2018, he became co-owner of Nobu Houston, Texas. The entry is exact by design. It names the…

James Beard Award winner

Rocco DiSpirito

New York City, New York, United States

Rocco DiSpirito’s formation runs through formal training and early repetition in service kitchens. The Culinary Institute of America and Boston University gave him the base; New…

Winemaker

Rory Lane

Moorabbin, Australia

## The Essentials At The Story Wines in Moorabbin, the work sits with Rory Lane in both roles: winemaker and owner. That pairing keeps the making and the business in the same…

James Beard Award winner

Roy Choi

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States

## Coming Up Training across the Culinary Institute of America, California State University, Fullerton, and Western State University law school gave Roy Choi a broad technical…

Winemaker

Salvo Foti

Milo, Italy

Salvo Foti works in enology from the vineyard outward, at I Vigneri di Salvo Foti (Milo), with close attention to land, vine, and the conditions that shape both. The method is…

James Beard Award winner

Sarah Stegner

Northbrook, Illinois, United States

Sarah Stegner, co-owner & chef of Prairie Grass Cafe in Northbrook, Illinois, is a James Beard Foundation Best Chef: Midwest winner. The work reads as accumulation: formal…

Founder & CEO, ONA Coffee

Sasa Sestic

Sydney, Australia

## The Trajectory Competitive discipline moved across fields in 2000, when Sasa Sestic played handball for the Australian National Team before building his trade around coffee.…

James Beard Award winner

Sean Gray

Delaware, New Jersey, United States

Sean Gray cooks at Sergeantsville Inn in Sergeantsville, New Jersey, where the work is built around disciplined understatement. The food reads as unforced, but the effect depends…

Viticulturist, I Vigneri

Simone Foti

Milo, Italy

Simone Foti is a viticulturist at the Etna estate I Vigneri and a son of founder Salvo Foti. Born in Catania in 1994, he studied at the wine school in Beaune, completed…

Michelin-starred chef

Sirijan Saelee

Doha, Qatar

Sirijan Saelee is Chef de Cuisine at Isaan, Grand Hyatt Doha Hotel & Villas in Doha, Qatar. ## The Climb Kitchen leadership at Isaan, Grand Hyatt Doha Hotel & Villas, calls for…

Winemaker

Stef Yim

Randazzo, Italy

Since 2015, Stef Yim has founded and made wine at Azienda Agricola Sciara, bringing sommelier experience from fine dining establishments in Los Angeles into vineyard and cellar…

James Beard Award winner

Stephen Durfee

San Francisco, California, United States

## The Path The pastry line at The French Laundry in Yountville, CA (1994–2000) set the terms for Stephen Durfee’s reputation: meticulous work, clean structure, and desserts built…

James Beard Award winner

Steve Luke

Seattle, Washington, United States

## Coming Up The early work in a brewery is often invisible, and Steve Luke’s path ran through that labor first: sweeping floors and making boxes at Allagash Brewing Company in…

James Beard Award winner

Taavo Somer

New York City, New York, United States

Taavo Somer’s work starts with rooms that know their own point of view. Freemans, the New York City restaurant he cofounded, established that approach early: a place built around…

James Beard Award winner

Tamara Murphy

Seattle, Washington, United States

American Tamara Murphy’s work tracks the Seattle kitchen landscape through repetition, discipline, and a sustained focus on Pacific Northwest cuisine. Across successive rooms and…

Bartender / bar director

Tara Wong

Detroit, Michigan, United States

Professional bar work often starts before the bar: in the repeated, necessary labor that keeps service moving. Around 20 years ago, Tara Wong was a teenage dishwasher and kitchen…

Chef

Taylor Ponte

Kihei, Hawaii, United States

Chef Partner at Aurum Maui in Wailea, Hawaii, places Taylor Ponte’s work in a kitchen defined by island sourcing, restaurant leadership, and the pressure of translating place into…

James Beard Award winner

Tony Maws

Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States

## Coming Up Lineage in this kitchen reads less like a single master class than a steady accumulation of habits. Tony Maws has described his early education with the line, “No one…

James Beard Award winner

Tony Messina

East Boston, Massachusetts, United States

## Coming Up Technique came first in Cambridge Culinary School, where Tony Messina built the base that carried him into Boston kitchens. The early work that followed demanded…

Chef

Vikram Garg

Honolulu, Hawaii, United States

Owner and Chef at UMI by Vikram Garg in Honolulu, Hawaii, is the current frame for Vikram Garg’s work from 2023 to the present. The title sits on top of a career built through…

Cofounder and brewmaster

Vinnie Cilurzo

Santa Rosa, California, United States

## The Path Hop-forward American brewing, as practiced in California, depends on technical control as much as sensory judgment. UC Davis short courses gave Vinnie Cilurzo a…

Chef

Vivek Surti

Nashville, Tennessee, United States

Vivek Surti ## The Climb At Vanderbilt University, Vivek Surti built the foundation for a practice that would later move from writing to service. In 2009, he began blogging at…

James Beard Award winner

Warda Bouguettaya

Detroit, Michigan, United States

## The Climb Technique and discipline sit at the center of Warda Bouguettaya’s work. Training at University and Restaurant-École Institut Paul Bocuse gave her a formal base before…

Bartender

Yangdup Lama

Delhi, India

## Training and Lineage Hospitality training at IAM Kolkata set the operating base for Yangdup Lama: service discipline before bar technique, with the guest experience treated as…

Chef

Cynthia Shanmugalingam

London, United Kingdom

Cynthia Shanmugalingam, chef and founder of Rambutan in London, comes to the table through British-Sri Lankan identity, Tamil roots, and the memory-work of Village Sri Lankan…

Chef

Hiroji Obayashi

Los Angeles, California, United States

His work helped sharpen the city’s read on Japanese cooking in Los Angeles, with a style built on discipline and restraint. Farm-fresh vegetables were handled with season in mind;…

Chef

Matteo Limoli

Washington DC, Washington DC, United States

Matteo Limoli’s profile is built on restraint: not a lot of noise, but a clear line from training to executive responsibility. The craft here is kitchen leadership, and in…

Chef

**Acru**: Daniel Garwood

Acru: Daniel Garwood is identified first by role, and that is the point: Executive Chef at Alexander in Pädaste, Estonia is the fact that frames the work. In a profile this…

James Beard Award winner

A. E. Hotchner

A. E. ## The Essentials A. E. Hotchner built a career across writing, editing, fiction, drama, and biography, with no single form holding the whole of it. That range is the point.…

Executive Chef

Aadel Ouaoua

Aadel Ouaoua is Executive Chef at RSVP.

World's 50 Best Bars

Aaron Goldfarb

## Coming Up At VinePair, the work sits between reporting and interpretation: alcohol, drinking, beer, craft beer, cocktails, breweries, bars, and food all fall within the same…

James Beard Award winner

Aaron Hall

Aaron Hall is a baker at The Local Crumb in Mount Vernon. That title keeps the focus where the work is: in the bakery, where flour, heat, timing, and repetition shape the day.…

James Beard Award winner

Aaron Hoskins

Aaron Hoskins has worked both sides of the pass and the room, and since 2015 that has shown up in the same title: Culinary Director and Partner at CITY GRIT Hospitality Group. The…

Chef

Aaron Lindell

Aaron Lindell describes Quarter Sheets (Echo Park, Los Angeles) in the language of method, not marketing. “It’s really a pan-style pizza place,” he says, and that plain statement…

Master Sommelier

Aaron Patrick

Aaron Patrick Adams is a chef whose signature work is Farm Spirit, a project built around a simple trade proposition: cook from what is around you, and let the season set the…

Culinary legend

Aarón Sánchez

“My nonprofit and scholarship fund is going to help and identify a core group of people—the new face of our industry. Specifically people of multicultural backgrounds and women…

Other

Aaron Torricelli

## The Path Operations is the work that holds a hospitality business together, and at Frontier Chicago Aaron Torricelli is the person named in that function. The role sits with…

James Beard Award winner

Abby Mandel

## Career In Chicago, market design has to answer to seasonality, foot traffic, and the city’s own pace. Abby Mandel helped shape a produce market that met those conditions…

Special projects lead

Abdul Kurdieh

Abdul Kurdieh returned to Norwich Meadows Farm in 2021 and leads special projects supporting its continued success.

Winemaker

Abel Codesso

Winemaking here is anchored in Alvarinho, and Abel Codesso’s work has been shaped by the slow repetition of cellar practice and the mentors who taught him to taste with…

James Beard Award winner

Abena Anim-Somuah

Abena Anim-Somuah works across hosting and Special Projects with a focus on how food conversations get made, shaped, and circulated. At the Cherry Bombe Podcast Network and Daly…

Master distiller / blender

Abhishek Khaitan

## The Path There is no extended trail of schools or prior posts here, which keeps the emphasis on the office itself. In trade terms, that kind of brevity is useful. It tells you…

Other

Abigail Gullo

Abigail Gullo is Creative Director of Loa Bar in New Orleans, United States, and the role suits a bar program built on structure, restraint, and clean execution. ## The Climb The…

chef

Abigail Olson

Abigail Olson’s profile is defined by kitchen discipline at senior sous level: the pressure of service, the translation of standards into repeatable execution, and the ability to…

James Beard Award winner

Abiodun Henderson

Abiodun Henderson founded The Come Up Project and serves as its Executive Director, building a model centered on agriculture, employment, and entrepreneurship for formerly…

Chef

Abishek Sharma

## The Path Family training is the foundation of Abishek Sharma’s kitchen discipline, and New York City restaurants under his father gave that training its shape. The work started…

James Beard Award winner

Abra Berens

## Coming Up Training at Ballymaloe Cookery School put technique and seasonality into the frame early, and the work that followed at Zingerman’s Deli in Ann Arbor, Michigan, gave…

Other

Abraham Gessesse

Abraham Gessesse has been chef-owner of Hyacinth in Saint Paul, Minnesota, since 2023. The work there sits in a register of restraint: ingredients handled with attention,…

Master distiller / blender

Abram Smith Bowman

That year remains the cleanest marker attached to Abram Smith Bowman: founder, place, and date line up in a single fact, and together they form the entire silhouette of his public…

Chef

Achim Cuntz

Achim Cuntz’s public profile is anchored in winery management at Weingut Cuntz Sonnenhof in Schweigen-Rechtenbach. In trade terms, that role is where cellar rhythm, vineyard…

Winemaker

Achim von Oetinger

## The Path Cellar work is built on repetition, timing, and judgment, and Achim von Oetinger’s training was shaped by that discipline from the start. At Rheinhessen winemaking…

Former Head Bartender, American Bar at The Savoy

Ada Coleman

Between 1903 and 1926, English bartender Ada Coleman worked the American Bar at the Savoy Hotel, London, a post where timing, recall, and control shaped every shift. As head…

Other

Adalberto Diaz

## Coming Up Baking is the first read on Adalberto Diaz: the work comes before the biography, and the craft carries the rest. In Salt Lake City, United States, the combination of…

Pastry chef

Adalberto Diaz Labrada

From Cuba to the United States, Adalberto Diaz Labrada’s work has been shaped by motion, discipline, and a steady commitment to pastry craft. In Salt Lake City, Utah, Fillings &…

Bartender / bar director

Adam Brewer

That role sits between the pour and the room. As bar director, Adam Brewer works at the point where drink execution meets service structure, keeping the bar’s pace, order flow,…

James Beard Award winner

Adam Bricker

On *Chef's Table*, Adam Bricker used slow-motion, high-resolution macro photography to give steam, glaze, and the fine sheen of a finished dish real structure on screen. The work…

Sommelier

Adam Cantle

## Coming Up Training at Griffith University gave Adam Cantle the base for a practice built on service discipline and a focused palate. The work reads as trade-first: wine…

James Beard Award winner

Adam Danforth

Adam Danforth is an author, butcher, and educator, a career shaped by a striking turn from the polished cadence of advertising and marketing into the more immediate, exacting…

James Beard Award winner

Adam Evans

Adam Evans has built a kitchen practice that stays close to the tide line: attentive, disciplined, and shaped by Gulf Coast product. Since 2019, he has served as Executive Chef…

James Beard Award winner

Adam Farmerie

Since 2016, Adam Farmerie has held the principal role at AvroKO Hospitality Group in New York City, building on a practice defined by the overlap between design and dining. The…

Bartender / bar director

Adam Fournier

## Where They Are Now Dual bar directors at Fellow in Los Angeles and Spago Beverly Hills in Beverly Hills, Adam Fournier works across two rooms that ask for the same thing in…

James Beard Award winner

Adam Gollner

## The Path Editorial work at Vice magazine gave Adam Gollner a training ground where speed, accuracy, and sequencing had to hold together. That early stint sharpened the voice he…

Chef

Adam Hyatt

Adam Hyatt’s current post as Executive Chef of the Epicurean Hotel in Tampa, Florida, sits inside a Florida kitchen record built through station work, group operations,…

Executive Chef

Adam Korbel

Adam Korbel is the Executive Chef at Public Service.