Resy Presents

The Women of Food

Welcome to The Women of Food, Resy's ongoing celebration of women in restaurants. Whether it's female ownership or matriarchal inspiration, the chef cooking your food or the server bringing it out, we know that women power the industry.

Saori Kawano, the founder and president of Korin.

New York

Meet Saori Kawano, the Woman Who Introduced America’s Chefs to Japanese Knives

Every first-year student going into the Culinary Institute of America’s culinary program starts with a starter pack of eight knives:…

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Chicago

How Mi Tocaya Antojería’s Diana Dávila Sees a Different Side to Chicago Food

The world swiftly took notice of chef Diana Dávila when she opened Mi Tocaya Antojería five years ago. More From Resy…

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Discover Women-Powered Restaurants


Café La Trova interior.

Guides

The Resy Guide to the Women-Owned Restaurants of Miami

Guides

The Resy Guide to the Women-Owned Restaurants of Boston

Guides

The Resy Guide to the Women-Owned Restaurants of New York

Guides

The Resy Guide to the Women-Owned Restaurants of Washington, D.C.

Guides

The Resy Guide to the Women-Owned Restaurants of Chicago

Guides

The Resy Guide to the Women-Owned Restaurants of Los Angeles

Guides

16 of Houston’s Best Women-Led Restaurants

Guides

11 Amazing Women-Powered Restaurants in Portland

Guides

11 of Austin’s Best Women-Led Restaurants

Guides

The Resy Guide to Philadelphia’s Women-Owned Restaurants

Guides

The Resy Guide to the Women-Owned Restaurants of Atlanta

Guides

The Resy Guide to the Women-Owned Restaurants of the San Francisco Bay Area

Women of Food

The Resy Guide to Women-Operated Restaurants in Seattle

Guides

The Resy Guide to The Women-Owned Restaurants of London

Guides

The Resy Guide To The Women-Owned Restaurants of Sydney

Guides

Nine Great Women-Led Restaurants in Dallas

Charleston Grill dish.

Guides

The Resy Guide to the Women-Led Restaurants of Charleston

Surbhi Sahni

New York

For Tagmo’s Surbhi Sahni, Queerness Is True Hospitality

Chef Surbhi Sahni radiates warmth as she emerges from the kitchen and flits through the dining room at Tagmo, the…

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London

Oklava’s Founders On Why The Restaurant Industry Needs More Action – And Less Lip Service

For the London event of The Women of Food dinner series on June 28, Selin Kiazim and Laura Christie of…

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Besharam exterior.

San Francisco

Heena Patel Speaks About Besharam’s Beautiful Evolution: ‘I’m Writing My Own Story’

The award-winning Besharam is chef-owner Heena Patel’s restaurant located in San Francisco’s Dogpatch neighborhood. The space and place is deeply…

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The Women of Food


Chef-owner Nina Compton.

Resy Questionnaire

20 Questions with Nina Compton of Compère Lapin and Bywater American Bistro

Dish By Dish

How Jupiter at Rock Center Celebrates Regional Italian Cuisine, in Five Dishes

Resy Features

Raf’s Brings Renewal to a Storied Little Italy Address

Kannika Kittipinyovath, aka Chef Moi

Dish By Dish

The Veteran Chef Pushing Thai Cuisine Forward at Zaab Zaab Talay

Resy Regulars

Pig and Khao Chef Leah Cohen’s Favorite Date Night Spots

Interviews

Bar Roma’s Julia Zhu Opened Her First Restaurant at 60. And She’s Just Getting Started

Interviews

Piccino’s Margherita Sagan and Sheryl Rogat Reflect on Their Journey and the Community They’ve Built

A Candid Conversation About Patriarchy in Restaurants

In this special series, we examine the broad structural underpinnings of patriarchy as it relates to the restaurant industry, and…

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Why Erika Chou Is Supporting Breastfeeding Mothers in the Restaurant Industry

In July 2020, Erika Chou, co-founder and partner of New York-based Rivers and Hills Hospitality Group (Kimika, Wayla, Wan Wan),…

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Los Angeles

The Sisters Who Revolutionized Thai Food in L.A.

Tuk Tuk Thai had been situated on Pico Boulevard, serving classic Thai dishes like pad see ew, barbecue chicken, and…

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New York

Meet Vicki Freeman, the New York Restaurateur Who Deserves Your Attention

“Is there anything else you’d like to share about her?” “The one thing I will say is that she should…

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New YorkNational

On Edna Lewis, and Finding Your Own Path as a Southern Black Woman

Nicole A. Taylor is the author of Watermelon & Red Birds. Her words follow.  You can’t talk about American food,…

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Leaders


La Vara, Saint Julivert Fisherie, and Txikito chef-owner Alex Raij.

New York

‘Being a Woman Has Made Me More Innovative’: Alex Raij on the Gender Gap in the Restaurant Industry 

Alex Raij is one of the country’s most acclaimed chefs and restaurateurs, having pioneered tapas and Basque cuisine in New…

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The Grey chef-owner Mashama Bailey.

Savannah

At The Grey, Running a Restaurant Is an Ongoing Conversation

For The Grey chef-owner Mashama Bailey and her partner and co-founder, John O. Morisano, a restaurant should function like a…

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Boston

For Irene Li, Transparency Is the Restaurant Industry’s Path Forward

Not very many business owners will open up their books to you, literally. But that’s exactly what Boston chef Irene…

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San Francisco

Jessica Kapoor of Copas and Saison Hospitality on Leadership (and More!)

Last year, Saison Hospitality chief of staff Jessica Kapoor opened Copas, a bright restaurant on Market Street that blends the…

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Sydney

Authentic Enough For Whom? O Tama Carey Has a Lifetime of Knowledge, And More

O Tama Carey’s Sri Lankan roots haven’t protected her from feeling “fraudulent” about serving the island country’s cuisine. But after…

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New York

The Musket Room Won’t Go Back to the Status Quo

The white gazpacho on the menu at The Musket Room in New York is more than a good dish, it’s…

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San Francisco

Cassava’s Yuka Ioroi on Leading, Reopening, and Building a Better Restaurant Industry

For local diners, Cassava has long been a staple of its Outer Richmond neighborhood, with owners Yuka Ioroi and Kristoffer…

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"Kalaya is about culture. It’s about authenticity. It’s about you coming to learn my cuisine." // Photo by Kae Lani Palmisano

Philadelphia

Kalaya’s Chutatip “Nok” Suntaranon Wants You to Understand Real Thai Food

My first meal at Kalaya started with shaw muang, ornate dumplings shaped like flowers and tinged blue with butterfly pea…

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Los Angeles

20 Questions with Antonia Lofaso of DAMA, Scopa Italian Roots, and More

In the Resy Questionnaire, we play a game of 20 questions with the industry folks behind some of our favorite…

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Celebrate Black Women


Marie Mitchell, the chef and co-founder of Island Social Club.

London

Black Joy, Our Greatest Form of Activism 

Marie Mitchell is the chef and co-founder of Island Social Club, a contemporary British Caribbean restaurant and bar that’s popped…

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San Francisco

‘We Are Still Here’: On Standing Up for San Francisco’s Black Community

San Francisco native Tiffany Carter is the chef and owner of Boug Cali in San Francisco, as well as a…

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Boston

How Afro-Tiki Is Reclaiming Tiki Culture for the Next Generation

At the end of last year, some Boston revelers ringing in 2021 toasted with takeout cocktails they’ve likely never tasted…

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I’ve had offers from all over the world to come but at 74 years old, I think I’m just a little too old to be flying across the oceans. I leave it to whatever happens, happens. But as far as I’m concerned, I’m just very satisfied with staying right here in Nashville and trying to make things better. Ms. André Prince Jeffries, owner of Prince’s Hot Chicken in Nashville,
Sylvia's in New York.

New York

Sylvia’s in Harlem Still Stands For Community

A couple of weeks ago, on a Sunday afternoon in August, I strolled up to the pickup window at Sylvia’s…

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San Francisco

On San Francisco’s Black-Owned Restaurants, COVID-19, and the First American Pandemic

Nikki Cooper is the second-generation owner of  San Francisco’s first legacy business, Two Jack’s Nik’s Place, a family-owned staple of…

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Twisted Soul Cookhouse & Pours interior.

Atlanta

If Systemic Racism Is The Immovable Object, Then Now Is The Time To Be The Unstoppable Force

Deborah VanTrece is the chef and owner of Twisted Soul Cookhouse & Pours in Atlanta. ***** This time, it’s going…

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The Next Generation


Union Miller pastry chef Claudia Martinez.

Atlanta

Miller Union’s Claudia Martinez Wants to Change ‘Toxic’ Restaurant Culture

Claudia Martinez took Atlanta by storm when she was just 25. In 2018, she was the young chef running the…

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Los Angeles

Meet Samantha Quintero, the Trailblazing Chef Quietly Powering Night+Market Sahm

If you drop by Night+Market Sahm during Resy’s Off Menu Week LA (Feb. 24 to Mar. 1), you may notice…

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San Francisco

Crystal Wahpepah Wants to Showcase Indigenous American Cuisine and Ingredients

Among the many deserving Bay Area nominees for this year’s James Beard Foundation awards, perhaps none is as notable as…

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London

Despite Decades of Flight, London’s Afghan Community Is Not Defined by Its Trauma

Born in Kabul, Afghanistan, and raised in Hackney in London, Mursal Saiq is the co-founder and director of Cue Point,…

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Charleston

For This Pastry Chef, Selling Whimsical Ice Cream Treats Became a ‘Life Raft’

The pieces of “not-fried chicken” come piled up in a yellow-striped bucket. The “canned ham” is topped with pineapple rings…

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Houston

Meet Kaitlin Steets, the Rising Star Behind Theodore Rex’s Pop-Up, Littlefoot

About a month before Theodore Rex debuted its third pandemic pop-up, chef-owner Justin Yu told his chef de cuisine that…

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New York

All Kate Telfeyan Wants Is a Better Restaurant Industry 

What happens when you write an article that decries the relationship between food media and the rise of toxic restaurant leaders, only…

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The Women Who Power Restaurants


 

Mandolin chicken dish

Miami

How to Snag a Table at Mandolin Aegean Bistro, and What to Order

For more than a decade, Mandolin Aegean Bistro has been a whimsical beacon of fresh, housemade fare and warm hospitality.…

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New York

Meet Tama Matsuoka Wong, the Forager Who Brings Weeds to New York’s Top Restaurants

What do a pillar of haute gastronomy, a Harlem cocktail bar, a buzzy Korean restaurant, and a pioneer of vegetarian cooking all have in common? A…

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Sydney

Momofuku Seiōbo Wouldn’t Be What It Is Without Kylie Javier Ashton. Here’s Why.

In 2013, Kylie Javier Ashton spent her honeymoon going to every Momofuku restaurant in New York. Technically, she was off-duty…

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London

At Apricity, Chantelle Nicholson Centres Conscious Dining ⁠— And Spreads Joy

“It’s now or never,” says chef and restaurateur Chantelle Nicholson of her quietly radical new ‘circular restaurant’ Apricity. By which,…

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London

“Diversity in London is Our Strength.” A Guide to Soho with Amy Lamé, London’s Night Czar

With London in the thick of the Christmas season, the pandemic’s effect on businesses that depend most on evening and…

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Baltimore

‘Baltimore Can Be a Model For the World’: Irena Stein on Transforming the Industry

Before the novel coronavirus disrupted travel, Baltimore restaurateur Irena Stein would visit her childhood home of Venezuela every four months…

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"Once white male chefs do something, other cooks get erased," says Amanda Cohen. // Photo by Mike Grippi for Resy

New York

Amanda Cohen Has Pioneered So Much. Why Aren’t We Listening to Her?

Last summer, the New York Times ran a breathless, 2,000-word piece about watermelon ham, proclaiming it, along with root vegetable…

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Kismet

Los Angeles

The Duo at Kismet Has Seen the Future, and It Will Be Better

In Arabic, the word “kismet” means destiny, which is fitting for Sara Kramer and Sarah Hymanson’s popular Los Feliz restaurant.…

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Boston

The Boston Medical Student Who Rallied to Raise Millions for Restaurants and Their Employees

Natalie Guo vividly recalls the weekend everything changed.  It was the middle of March, and the coronavirus was tightening its…

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Resident chef Alexia Duchêne in front of Fulgurances in Greenpoint.

New York

Meet the Parisian Rising Star Headlining Greenpoint’s Coolest Chef Residency

Alexia Duchêne jokes that she’s arrived in New York as a “nobody,” but to thousands of French gourmands, she is…

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New York

Cha Kee’s Akiko Thurnauer Loves Noodles for Breakfast, and Dancing for Dinner

Where do chefs go and, more importantly, where do they love to eat? In Resy Regulars, we ask Resy chefs…

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New York

How Victoria Blamey Brings Her Unique Global Influences to Mena, in Five Dishes

Victoria Blamey is finally getting to show New York what she — and only she — is made of. The…

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Local Guides


 

Austin

11 of Austin’s Best Women-Led Restaurants

Today and everyday, we’re celebrating the many great women-powered restaurants of Austin, because these restaurants remain beacons in a male-dominated…

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Houston

16 of Houston’s Best Women-Led Restaurants

Today and everyday, we’re celebrating the many great women-owned restaurants of Houston, because these restaurants remain beacons in a male-dominated…

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Dallas

Nine Great Women-Led Restaurants in Dallas

Today and everyday, we’re celebrating the many great women-owned restaurants of Dallas, because these restaurants remain beacons in a male-dominated…

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Charleston Grill dish.

Charleston

The Resy Guide to the Women-Led Restaurants of Charleston

Today and everyday, we’re celebrating the many great women-owned restaurants of Charleston, because these restaurants remain beacons in a male-dominated…

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Café La Trova interior.

Miami

The Resy Guide to the Women-Owned Restaurants of Miami

Chef and restaurateur Michelle Bernstein is a fixture in Miami’s culinary scene. She’s earned numerous awards over the years for…

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Portland

11 Amazing Women-Powered Restaurants in Portland

Today and everyday, we’re celebrating the many great women-led restaurants of Portland, because these restaurants remain beacons in a male-dominated…

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Seattle

The Resy Guide to Women-Operated Restaurants in Seattle

The restaurant industry is tough for anyone with long hours, short breaks, and fast-paced, physically demanding working conditions. Women play…

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Atlanta

The Resy Guide to the Women-Owned Restaurants of Atlanta

We should be long past the days of reminding ourselves to celebrate women in all areas of life, including and…

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Los Angeles

The Resy Guide to the Women-Owned Restaurants of Los Angeles

Women do so much of the essential work in restaurants. And yet women struggle for recognition and visibility in so…

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San Francisco

The Resy Guide to the Women-Owned Restaurants of the San Francisco Bay Area

No other region in the country has a legacy like the Bay Area when it comes to women-led restaurants. From…

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Chicago

The Resy Guide to the Women-Owned Restaurants of Chicago

Today and everday, we’re celebrating the restaurants, and the women behind them, who shape the vibrant dining scene in the…

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Philadelphia

The Resy Guide to Philadelphia’s Women-Owned Restaurants

Women do so much of the essential work in restaurants. And yet women struggle for recognition and visibility in so…

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New York

The Resy Guide to the Women-Owned Restaurants of New York

Women do so much of the essential work in restaurants. And yet women struggle for recognition and visibility in so…

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Boston

The Resy Guide to the Women-Owned Restaurants of Boston

Today and everyday, we’re celebrating the many great women-owned restaurants of Boston, because these restaurants remain beacons in a male-dominated…

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