SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Williams Sonoma, a member of the Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE: WSM) portfolio of brands, announced today the names of fourteen chefs and bar experts as the latest members of the Williams Sonoma Chefs’ Collective. Each new member will serve as advisors and ambassadors for Williams Sonoma. The diverse group of restaurant, chef and bar industries professionals were selected to offer their unique expertise to Williams Sonoma by guiding future product and recipe development opportunities and providing personal insight as to how Williams Sonoma can continue to support the culinary hospitality industry and chef community.
Through the Collective they are giving back to their communities and will provide culinary insights, feedback on product development, testing, testimonials, exclusive content and new recipes.
The 2020 Williams Sonoma Chefs’ Collective is celebrating its five year anniversary of the Chefs’ Collective, but Williams Sonoma’s history as a culinary connector began over sixty years ago, when Chuck Williams introduced home cooks to iconic chefs, like James Beard and Julia Child, and the tools and equipment they used in their professional kitchens. Throughout the years, Williams Sonoma’s chefs have served as a voice of authority for the brand about what to cook, how to cook it, and what tools and ingredients should be used.
“For over 60 years Williams Sonoma has been at the forefront of connecting our customers with innovation and expertise in the culinary community,” said Williams Sonoma President Ryan Ross. “We feel privileged to bring a group of individuals we admire together in order to share their expertise with our team and to share their insights as to how we can continue to support an industry that is an integral part of our brand’s DNA.”
The 2020 Williams Sonoma Chefs’ Collective members include:
DAVID NAYFELD
Bay Area native David Nayfeld is the Executive Chef & Co-Owner of the award-winning restaurants Che Fico and Che Fico Alimentari in San Francisco. Nayfeld boasts a venerable restaurant pedigree, having worked alongside some of the most esteemed names in the industry. Nayfeld held positions at Aqua, Joël Robuchon at The Mansion, Cru and Eleven Madison Park. He also received a Michelin Guide The Plate Award – and Che Fico was featured in Bon Appétit as one of the Top 10 Best New Restaurants in America. A powerful culinary voice during the current crisis, Nayfield founded the Family Dinner Fund to help provide meals for those in need.
MASHAMA BAILEY
Mashama Bailey is the award-winning executive chef and partner of the critically acclaimed The Grey and The Grey Market in Savannah, Georgia. Since opening in 2014, The Grey has earned a number of accolades including being named a Food & Wine Restaurant of The Year, one of TIME Magazine's "The World's Greatest Places” and a semifinalist for the James Beard Foundation’s Best New Restaurant award, thanks in large part to Mashama’s flavorful dishes that highlight regional ingredients. With the premiere of Netflix’s Chef’s Table Season 6, Mashama became the first African American chef to star on the show. Mashama is the chairwoman of the Edna Lewis Foundation, whose mission is to honor and extend the legacy of Edna Lewis by creating opportunities for African Americans in the fields of cooking, agriculture, food studies, and storytelling. Mashama’s highly anticipated book, Black, White and The Grey debuts in 2021.
CLAUDETTE ZEPEDA
Claudette Zepeda is the Executive Chef of Alila Marea in San Diego. A James Beard Best Chef West semifinalist, she's a former Top Chef and Top Chef Mexico competitor. Zepeda has been featured in the New York Times, included in Esquire’s 2018 Best New Restaurants and recognized by Michelin’s 2019 Bib Gourmand list. In support of Feeding America's efforts to raise funds that will help hungry Americans, she has joined Storytellers Project’s "LIVE, in Your Home" – group of nationally renowned chefs sharing their personal stories around food with USA TODAY.
SHANNON MUSTIPHER
Shannon Mustipher is an independent spirits consultant with a strong focus on rum. Her passion for education is conveyed through Women Leading Rum, a cane spirit-centric professional development organization she co-founded – and Women Who Tiki, a pop-up tropical cocktail series celebrating talented female bartenders across the country. Earlier this year, Mustipher released her first cocktail book, Tiki: Modern Tropical Cocktails, an essential guide to the ultimate rum and Tiki classics which is nominated for an IACP award.
She is also the recipient of the Tales of The Cocktail Pioneer Award for 2020, as part of her induction into their Dame Hall of Fame. Mustipher launched Glady’s Caribbean in Brooklyn, where her tiki drinks received rave reviews.
ALBA HUERTA
Alba Huerta is a bartender turned bar owner/writer – and one of the country’s most celebrated mixologists. At her Houston bar, Julep, Huerta serves up her own Southern-inspired craft cocktails. In 2018, Huerta released her first cocktail book, Julep. She was named Imbibe's 2013 bartender of the year, one of Food & Wine's top 10 mixologists, and Texas Monthly's 2015 best bartender in Texas. Huerta is part of Full Hands In, Full Hands Out, a group working to help lead recovery efforts for Bar Owners. She's also a long-time supporter of No Kid Hungry and served as bar director for Taste of the Nation, Houston.
MILES MACQUARRIE
Miles Macquarrie is the co-owner and bar manager at Kimball House in Decatur, Georgia. A nationally celebrated mixologist, he worked his way through the Atlanta cocktail scene, spending time behind the bar of Holeman & Finch Public House and Leon’s Full Service. Famous for his passion and technique, he culls from local traditions of the Southeast, including mixing his own house-made bitters. Macquarrie has been named Rising Star Mixologist and featured in both Imbibe and Food & Wine. In addition to professional accolades, he has developed a cult following among industry and civilian tipplers alike.
KWAME ONWUACHI
Kwame Onwuachi is a former Top Chef contestant based in Washington, D.C. A James Beard Award winner, he was named Esquire’s Chef of the Year, one of Food & Wine’s Best New Chefs in 2019, and a 30 Under 30 honoree by both Zagat and Forbes. Onwuachi also co-wrote Notes from a Young Black Chef: A Memoir, which received a 2019 Goodreads Choice Award nomination for Best Food & Cookbooks. He has partnered with the Bronx Community Relief Effort to feed healthcare workers, first responders and students in his hometown – and is an avid supporter of the Independent Restaurant Coalition.
TIMOTHY HOLLINGSWORTH
Timothy Hollingsworth is a restaurateur and winner of Netflix’s cooking competition show, The Final Table. Formerly the Chef de Cuisine at Thomas Keller’s The French Laundry, he later opened his own L.A. restaurant, Otium. This fall, he'll open his new San Francisco restaurant, All This Time. Hollingsworth has won multiple awards, including James Beard Foundation's Rising Chef of the Year Award, the S.F. Chronicle’s Rising Star Chef Award – and placed 6th in the Bocuse d’Or. He has also joined with Ask Chefs Anything to raise funds for immigrant workers in service industries affected by the current global situation.
GREGORY GOURDET
Gregory Gourdet is a chef and television personality known for being the runner-up on Bravo’s Top Chef Season 12 – and is currently competing on the current Top Chef All-Stars Season 17. A three-time James Beard Award semifinalist and native New Yorker, he honed his culinary skills in celebrity chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s restaurant dynasty. In 2010, he became Executive Chef at Portland's Departure, gaining praise for his innovative dishes and taking on a key role in the local culinary scene. Gourdet's first cookbook, Everyone’s Table: Global Recipes for Modern Health, is slated to come out in Spring 2021.
MELISSA KING
Melissa King is a chef and television personality who was a finalist on Bravo’s Top Chef Season 12 – and is competing on this season’s Top Chef All-Stars Season 17. She has been recognized as one of the best female chefs in San Francisco, a 40 Under 40: Rising Star – and was co-host of the James Beard-nominated special "Taste Buds: Chefsgiving." King also helmed several legendary Michelin-starred kitchens in San Francisco. As a proud Asian-American and queer woman, she works passionately with nonprofit organizations and LGBTQI charities, including The Human Rights Campaign and Tegan and Sara Foundation.
ANGIE RITO & SCOTT TACINELLI
Husband-and-wife team Scott Tacinelli and Angie Rito are chefs/owners of Don Angie in NYC. They're known for refined Italian-American dishes, which have earned them two-star reviews from The New York Times and Eater NY. Most recently, Don Angie was named one of Esquire’s Best New Restaurants in America. The duo was among Zagat’s 13-under-the-radar-chefs-to-watch in NYC and received a 2019 James Beard Award nomination for Best Chef New York City. They're now partnering with Ask Chefs Anything to raise funds for immigrant workers in service industries affected by the current global situation.
PHIL KRAJECK
Phil Krajeck is a chef celebrated for his original work at some of the world's best restaurants. As Chef de Cuisine at the Water Color Inn & Resort’s Fish Out of Water in Santa Rosa Beach, Florida, he earned four James Beard Award nominations. Later, he opened the critically acclaimed Rolf & Daughters in Nashville, which earned "Best New Restaurant" nods from Esquire and Bon Appétit, as well as a Kentucky-Tennessee Rising Stars Award. To support the local community, Krajeck has teamed up with the CEO of Shearwater Health in Nashville, delivering weekly meals to the Vanderbilt University Medical Center staff.
MASON HEREFORD
Mason Hereford is a chef best known for his popular New Orleans sandwich shop, Turkey and the Wolf, which Bon Appétit Magazine named America’s Best New Restaurant. He's also a 2020 James Beard Award finalist for Best Chef. Hereford developed his passion for creative cooking with restaurant jobs around the country, including San Francisco and Charleston. He later moved back to New Orleans, working as Chef de Cuisine at Coquette and Sweet Olive – opening Turkey and the Wolf in 2016. Hereford has now teamed up with Duke’s Dishes for Donations in support of the Southern Smoke Foundation’s Emergency Relief Fund.
For more information about the Williams Sonoma’s 2002 Chefs’ Collective, please visit: www.williams-sonoma.com/chefscollective.
About Williams Sonoma
Since its founding by Chuck Williams in 1956, the Williams Sonoma brand has been bringing people together around food. A member of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE: WSM) portfolio of brands, Williams Sonoma is a leading specialty retailer of high-quality products for the kitchen and home, providing world-class service and an engaging customer experience. Products include cookware, cooks’ tools, cutlery, electrics, bakeware, food, tabletop and bar, outdoor, cookbooks, as well as furniture, lighting and decorative accessories. Each store offers cooking classes and tastings conducted by expert culinary staff. A comprehensive gift registry program for weddings and other special events is available in stores and online. On williams-sonoma.com and the Williams Sonoma blog, Taste, customers can find recipes, tips, and techniques that help them create delicious meals. Williams Sonoma can also be found on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, and YouTube. Williams Sonoma is also part of The Key Rewards, a free-to-join loyalty program that offers members exclusive benefits across the Williams-Sonoma, Inc. family of brands.
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