Leah Cohen is a renowned chef and owner of two highly acclaimed restaurants in New York City: Pig & Khao and Piggyback. She gained a national following after appearing on TV, making her breakthrough on Bravo’s hit show Top Chef, and has since appeared on various Food Network shows including Beat Bobby Flay, Guy’s Grocery Games, and Tournament of Champions.

Early in her career, Leah honed her skills in Michelin-starred kitchens, working alongside some of the world’s best chefs. Her Filipino heritage and regular visits to the region heavily influence her cooking style, which combines authentic Southeast Asian flavors with classical Western techniques.
 
In 2012, Leah opened the beloved Pig & Khao, a 74-seat restaurant that has garnered praise from a number of sources including The New York Times, New York Magazine, and The Huffington Post. In January 2020, she introduced her second restaurant, Piggyback, which offers a unique Pan-Asian dining experience. This colorful, boisterous spot features a spacious bar and a private event space called the Way Back Bar, nestled behind the main dining area.

Beyond her success on Food Network, Leah also appears as a culinary expert on popular morning shows like The TODAY Show and Good Morning America. She has also showcased her talents on seasons one and two of PBS’ Great American Chef.

Leah and her team are set to unveil a new location of Pig & Khao in Philadelphia in Summer 2025. This expansion marks an exciting milestone after a decade of operating in Manhattan only.

 

 

 

Sohui Kim is a classically-trained chef, restaurateur, and celebrated cookbook author. Born in Seoul, Korea, Sohui immigrated to the Bronx as a young child. Sohui earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from Barnard College in New York City. Once she found her life’s passion in the culinary arts and cooking, Sohui honed her skills under several lauded chefs, including Dan Barber and Michael Anthony at Blue Hill, Peter Hoffman at Savoy, and Anita Lo at her Michelin-starred restaurant, Annisa.

In 2006, she and her husband, Ben Schneider, opened The Good Fork in Red Hook, a Michelin Bib Gourmand restaurant serving seasonally-inspired global comfort food which ran for almost 18 years. Today, under new management and ownership, it exists as The Good Fork Pub where she occasionally helps out as a consultant. In 2015, the couple opened a Korean BBQ and karaoke hotspot, Insa, in Gowanus, which went on to receive a glowing two-star review from the New
York Times and earned her a nomination for the James Beard Foundation’s prestigious Best Chef: NYC award in 2019.

Sohui is a chef/partner at Gage & Tollner, the historic oyster and chop House which reopened in Downtown Brooklyn in 2021. The restaurant marks the third and largest endeavor in Sohui’s collection of beloved Brooklyn eateries. Sohui was nominated once again for the James Beard Foundation Best Chef: NYC in 2023. She wroteThe Good Fork Cookbook in 2016 and Korean Home Cooking in 2018, both published by Abrams Books.

Sohui lives with her husband and business partner Ben Schneider and their two awesome kids in Brooklyn.

 

 

 

 

 @focacciaflourist

Angie Rito is the chef and co-owner of beloved Italian-American restaurants Don Angie and San Sabino in New York City’s West Village.

 

Growing up around her family’s Italian bakery in Cleveland, Ohio, Angie’s passion for Italian-American culture, cuisine, and cooking grew naturally from a young age. After moving to New York City in 2007, Angie worked her way through a number of restaurants, including Park Avenue Seasons, The Hurricane Club, Quality Meats and Torrisi Italian Specialties. It was at Park Avenue Seasons that she met her future husband and business partner, Scott Tacinelli. The two went on to helm the kitchen at Quality Italian, where they invented the cult-favorite “Chicken Parm Pizza,” and later opened the acclaimed “reverse speakeasy” restaurant Dinnertable, hidden behind an East Village bar.

 

In 2018, they fulfilled their dream of opening their own special neighborhood spot with Don Angie, an intimate restaurant serving up a modern ode to Italian-American cuisine. The restaurant quickly received tremendous critical acclaim, including a two-star review from The New York Times and inclusion on Esquire’s Best New Restaurants in America list in 2018. Angie and Scott became known for boldly unexpected dishes that challenge your perception of traditional Italian-American cooking, earning them a nomination for Best Chef: New York City and New York State by the James Beard Foundation in 2019 and 2020, respectively, and Outstanding Chef 2022. Don Angie was also awarded a Michelin star in 2021 and 2022, and has been nominated for Outstanding Restaurant in 2025.

 

In 2021, Angie and Scott authored their first cookbook, Italian American, published by Clarkson Potter. In 2024, Angie and Scott opened their second restaurant, San Sabino, just next door from Don Angie, offering their signature, playfully unexpected spin on Italian cuisine, with a bold, coastal American seafood focus.

 

Today, Angie and Scott live in Brooklyn with their son, Roman. In her spare time, Angie enjoys traveling with her family, visiting friends’ new restaurants, and developing new recipes for her restaurants.