Celebrating Heritage Through Food
Lana Lagomarsini ’16 hosted a special Juneteenth cookout with Chef Nana Araba Wilmot, a past CIA Worlds of Flavor® speaker, and Chef Deborah Jean for the past four years, according to The New York Times. The event, which took place in Brooklyn, featured a mix of foods representing the African Diaspora.
Noor Murad ’10 shared some of her tablescapes and recipes from her debut solo cookbook, Lugma: Abundant Dishes and Stories from My Middle East (Quadrille), in an article and accompanying video for Homes & Gardens as part of the How I Host series. Murad will present at CIA’s Worlds of Flavor this November. Three of her recipes were also featured in the syndicated “Cook This” column. Lugma combines Murad’s Bahrain and English roots, through dishes such as Springtime Fattoush. She previously co-authored two cookbooks with Yotam Ottolenghi and ran the Ottolenghi Test Kitchen.
Tara’s Multicultural Table reviewed Ghana to the World: Recipes and Stories That Look Forward While Honoring the Past written by Eric Adjepong and Korsha Wilson ’07, featuring a recipe for Tamarind Limeade. Adjepong explained that he and Wilson wrote this book to, “push the boundaries of what many people think Africa is and isn’t. I feel a responsibility as a chef to bring tradition and culture to my cooking.”
New Restaurants
Savannah Jordan ’10 and her business partner, Parker Hollinger, opened the first brick-and-mortar location for Montauk Catch Club, according to Chronogram. The Rosendale, NY, location includes a market, pantry goods, house-made sauces, and prepared foods.
Sam Hazen ’82 and business partner, Joseph Palladino, planned to open two locations of their new Palladino’s Steak & Seafood concept in New York City and Dallas, according to Dallas Culture Map. The New York City location, which will be in Grand Central Terminal, will open in early summer, while the Dallas location will open in winter 2025.
Local Martha’s Vineyard outlet, The Vinyard Gazette, profiled Carols Montoya ’01 and his recently opened business The Maker Pasta Shop & Café, which has a local, seasonal, pasta-driven menu.
Meredith Miller ’03 planned to partner with her father, Jim Miller, to reopen their Orange County family business, Coffee Importers. According to The Orange County Register, the company is one of the oldest in Dana Point Harbor. At the time of the article, they recently reopened after moving to a larger location in their 46th year, and Meredith planned to introduce baked goods to the deli menu under the name Rubee June Bakery & Cafe.
David Rosner ’96 recently opened Rozzi Pizza in Santa Barbara, CA. According to the Santa Barbara Independent, the pizza shop fulfilled a childhood dream after years working in fine dining.
Joseph Iannaccone ’17 demonstrated how to make his popular Caramelle, a candy-shaped pasta with sweet potato filling, as part of the New Haven Independent’s profile on his recently opened Casanova restaurant in New Haven, CT.
Profiles and Features
Johnny Hernandez ’89 was featured on Pickup Lines on KSAT in San Antonio. In the segment, he discussed his family, career, and upcoming wedding.
R.J. “The Mulletteer” Williams ’07 has had an eventful life and career, according to a profile in the Virginia publication, the Suffolk News-Herald. His most recent endeavor is selling sauces. His first, Awesome Sauce, a candy apple bacon habanero hot sauce, recently received USDA approval at time of writing. He leans on his “Mulletteer” persona, named for his hair, for promotion.
Jessica ’96 and Matthew ’96 Lynn, who met at CIA, celebrated the 10th anniversary of their restaurant, Lynn’s Table, in May.
Brooklyn Paper profiled Eric LeVine’s ’90 Evolution, located inside Williamsburg’s 42 Hotel in Brooklyn. His tasting concept for Evolution combined nostalgic foods from LeVine’s roots, like Coney Island hot dogs, and reimagined them from a fine dining perspective.
Ouita Michel ’91 and her expansive portfolio of successful businesses in Lexington, KT, were featured on local news outlet WLEX. Michel met husband Chris ’91 while attending CIA.
Luis Morales ’07 and his wife Marsha credit the San Antonio community for their brand’s retail success, according to a piece on local San Antonio outlet KSAT. Their salsa, which is manufactured and sourced locally, recently made its way onto H-E-B store shelves after an open call “Quest for Texas Best.” Their products are now in 285 H-E-B stores and 400 Walmarts.
Wine and Beverages
Court of Master Sommeliers-certified CIA alum Melissa Smith ’02 spoke with local Vermont publication Seven Days about why wine and cheese pair so well and her favorite traditional and nontraditional pairings.
Awards and Accolades
Several alumni and CIA friends made the annual list of The New York Times’s top 100 restaurants in New York City. Kwame Onwuachi’s ’13 Tatiana was once again on the list at #10 and was joined in the top ten by Paul Carmichael’s ’02 Kabawa at #4 and Joshua Pinsky’s ’05 Penny at #7.
Cherry Bombe, a publication that focuses on women and food, released its first ever power list. The list included many CIA friends, such as Laura Cunningham, Katina Connaughton, Mary Celeste Beall, Elizabeth Blau, and Dr. Jessica B. Harris, as well as alumni, including Marcy Blum ’75, Lena Ciardullo ’09, Sohla El-Waylly ’10, Melissa King ’07, Tracy Malechek-Ezekiel ’08, and Susan Feniger ’77.
Eddie Ledesma-Porter ’04 and husband James’s takeout restaurant, May’s Eats Gourmet To Go, in Corinth, TX, won an award for diverse-owned business of the year from the Denton Champer of Commerce, according to CultureMap Dallas. Their business, named after Eddie’s grandmother, focuses on seasonal menus made with local, organic ingredients.
Jim’s Smokehouse, owned by Brad Yerkes ’93, is the No. 2 food truck in the country, according to Yelp!’s list of the top 100 food trucks in the U.S. The list was announced in celebration of National Food Truck Day on June 27.
Steady Hand Café and Collective, owned and operated by Ashley Burk ’10, made Imbibe’s list of the top places to drink in Asbury Park, NJ. According to Burk, the café, which opened its first brick-and-mortar storefront this year, seeks to “bridge the gap between the coffee and cocktail world” with its menu of unique coffee drinks, sodas, and other non-alcoholic beverages.
David Burke ’82 was one of seventeen new inductees to the New Jersey Hall of Fame. Inductees will be honored at the 17th Annual New Jersey Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony on November 21 in East Rutherford, NJ.
Pichaya ‘Pam’ Soontornyanakij ’13 was namedthe world’s best female chef, according to The World’s 50 Best Restaurants. Chef Pam, as she is known, was previously named Asia’s Best Female Chef in 2024. Her restaurant, Potong, is in the same building where her family’s 120-year-old herbal pharmacy was once located.
7a Foods, a breakfast and lunch spot owned by Daniel Sauer ’99, was named one of the best restaurants in Martha’s Vineyard by Eater Boston.
Teaching the Next Generation of Chefs
Johnny Hernandez’s ’89 culinary impact on San Antonio continues to expand, according to a profile by The San Antonio Report. The article discussed Hernandez’s dedication to celebrating Mexican cuisine, his nonprofit organization Kitchen Campus, which connects youth to culinary opportunities, and his two annual Paella Challenges—one for U.S. and Mexican chefs and the other for high-school students. Hernandez recently flew the top three teams to CIA New York for dinner, a tour, and workshops.
Innovation in the Kitchen
Nathan Hood ’07 and wife Shannon created one of the most innovative mushroom farms in the Charleston area selling nearly 1,000 pounds to restaurants each week, according to The Post and Courier. Initially inspired to grow his own mushrooms in his garage out of necessity as a chef, Hood eventually created Raven Farms. He uses his experience from both ends of production—grower and chef—to guide his business.
Grant Achatz’s ’94 use of ChatGPT to create one of nine courses for an upcoming menu at his Next restaurant in Chicago was highlighted in this New York Times article exploring how restaurateurs can best use AI.