Meet the 2019 sofi Judges

Kobla Asamoah, HEAD OF SMALL BUSINESS, HOT BREAD KITCHEN Kobla serves as the Program Director for HBK Incubates, Hot Bread Kitchen's business incubator. In this role, Kobla focuses on growing the incubator program and works closely with its member businesses to provide resources and programming that will aid in their growth ambitions. In addition to a passion for entrepreneurship, he brings experience supporting a wide array of small businesses in scaling. Prior to joining Hot Bread Kitchen in 2016, Kobla spent four years at St. Nicks Alliance, a Brooklyn-based non-profit focused on community revitalization through economic development. There, he helped small to medium size businesses in formation, marketing, accessing capital, certifications and a variety of other strategic and operational issues. Prior to his work in non-profit, Kobla spent several years in the Capital Markets, working with mid to large size companies on corporate finance, investor relations and other institutional ownership related topics. He is a Charted Market Technician (CMT) and has an MBA in finance and entrepreneurship from NYU’s Stern School of Business as well as a BA in International Relations from Tufts University.

Paulina is the culinary director at Home Chef, a meal-kit delivery service headquartered in Chicago. She manages new R&D, runs the test kitchen, and sets weekly-changing menus of fresh, innovative meals designed for cooking skills of all levels. A typical day involves tasting 16+ versions of future meals and saying things like "Needs twice as much cheese." Prior to attending culinary school, she was a forensic CPA.

Tenaya Darlington is the author of four cookbooks, the dairy-centric writer behind the blog Madame Fromage, and Cheese Director at Tria in Philadelphia. She’s also a member of the English Department at Saint Joseph's University where she teaches food writing. Her publications include Di Bruno Bros. House of Cheese, The New Cocktail Hour, TCM’s Movie Night Menus, and Booze and Vinyl. Her next book The Milky Way: A Cheese Lover’s Guide to the Galaxy will reach earth in Fall 2020.

Megan Ercole is a retail manager/buyer for Adams Fairacre Farms, a local chain in the Hudson Valley, and has been in her current role for four years. Her duties have included helping write and buy for ads and flyers, buying for the retail chain, and she was heavily involved in the renovation of her department. While at Adams her hard work and passion for specialty foods has led her team to increased sales while maintaining a consistent margin. Some of her achievements include competing in last year’s Cheese Monger Invitational, where she took 2nd place in the perfect plate portion of the competition. She also was one of six in the nation to win a sales based contest, which included a trip to France in 2018 to expand her knowledge of international foods and cheeses. Her experience does not stop at the cheese counter. She is a 2007 graduate of the Culinary Institute of America. After graduating she worked as a caterer and in several restaurants, before becoming Brasserie 292’s first pastry chef. A role which extended her passion for specialty foods well beyond the savory realm

Anagha is a Top 5 from Mastechef India, and IIFA super chef award winner. Anagha has a deep understanding of flavors across the world and love experimenting with various cuisines. Along with being a Chef, she also loves to do food and street/Travel Photography.

Dr. Linda Harris is a Specialist in Cooperative Extension in Microbial Food Safety, Chair of the Department of Food Science and Technology at the University of California Davis campus, and Co-PI for the Western Center for Food Safety. She oversees a research program on the microbial food safety of fresh fruits and vegetables and tree nuts and provides expertise on food safety microbiology throughout the food chain. Linda is actively involved with the International Association of Food Protection (IAFP) and was awarded the IAFP Educator Award and Frozen Food Foundation Research Award in 2004 and 2010, respectively. In 2013, she was elected to the IAFP Executive Board as Secretary and is currently serving as Past President of the association. Linda has taught food safety and food regulations to the specialty food industry and food industry entrepreneurs. She feels fortunate to have a job that has taken her all over the world where she has been able to enjoy a broad range of cuisines.

Will Horowitz is the executive chef and co-owner of Ducks Eatery and Harry & Ida’s Meat Supply Co in New York City. He is also the author of the newly released book "Salt Smoke Time" with Harper Collins and co-founder of the sustainable seaweed company Akua. His New York culinary heritage is deep rooted, with grandparents on both sides as local chefs: one a French-trained chef cooking seasonally on the North Fork of Long Island, the other running a traditional Jewish Delicatessen in Harlem. Will attended Naropa University in Boulder, Colorado for Tibetan Buddhism and eco-sustainability. There he spent extensive time studying primitive survival, permaculture, small-scale farming and off-the-grid homesteading. He began pursuing his professional cooking career at the Culinary School of the Rockies and Johnson & Wales in 2004. Will first moved to NYC in 2009 to open the famous ping pong club Spin New York before leaving to open Ducks Eatery with his sister. Most recently his work in fermented and smoked whole plant meat-alternatives such as a smoked watermelon "ham", smoked cantaloupe burger and root vegetable charcuterie has been met with huge international fanfare. A big believer of using the local terroir as inspiration, Will is an avid forager, fisherman and naturalist. He currently lives in New York City where his focus is on using heritage culinary techniques to create more added-value products out of underutilized highly sustainable ingredients.

Cathy Jörin is Director of The Food Business School (FBS) of The Culinary Institute of America (CIA). The Food Business School is the CIA’s center for executive and graduate education, inaugurated in Spring 2015. Cathy leads administration and operations for FBS, including finance, human resources, and marketing and she works closely with CIA Provost Mark Erickson with key responsibilities for the School’s strategic plan and partnership development. Cathy has enjoyed a long and rewarding career with CIA, most recently as Director of Special Projects & Planning for the Strategic Initiatives Group, which is responsible for a broad array of industry leading educational and conference events for professionals in the foodservice industry. Previously, she held positions as Director of Business Analysis for Continuing Education and Associate Director of Education at the CIA’s Greystone campus. Cathy continues to serve as the Strategic Initiatives liaison and project leader in Asia, working with Asia based CIA partners and heading up initiatives such as the Singapore based Worlds of Healthy Flavors ASIA®, as well as a recently launched Japanese Studies program for CIA Bachelor’s degree students. She has lead efforts in program development and execution for selected CIA Worlds of Flavor® (WOF) conferences, including WOF 2010, Japan: Flavors of Culture, and WOF 2015, Asia and the Theater of World Menus. Cathy’s prior experience also includes two years as Vice President of Sales and Marketing at The Perfect Puree of Napa Valley, and six years as a co-owner of a retail and wholesale bakery. Cathy earned her MBA at the University of San Francisco. She holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree from the University of California, Irvine, and is a graduate of the Culinary Arts program of the California Culinary Academy. Cathy is a former member of the Board of Directors of Women Chefs & Restaurateurs (WCR) where she was Chair of the WCR Business Development Committee and Chair of the WCR 2013 annual conference in San Francisco, celebrating WCR’s 20th Anniversary. She is a member of the San Francisco Chapter of Les Dames d’Escoffier, chairing the Membership Nominating Committee, and is an active member in her community having served as a volunteer for several organizations.

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Jennifer’s love of cooking was planted by her grandmother as a child in Tennessee with all the classic Southern favorites. She was raised in the state of Maine and in her 20’s moved to New York City for 12 years where her passion for great food was cultivated and grew as she traveled around Europe and the U.S. Jennifer is fluent in Spanish and also has interest in design, finish carpentry, and photography. She enjoys keeping up with trends in flavor, nutrition, and gastronomy. Jennifer loves to meet food producers and hear their stories. She has great influence on specialty food buying decisions for Dorothy Lane Market.

Sara Moulton writes a weekly column for the Associated Press and a monthly column for the Washington Post. She is the host of the PBS show, “Sara’s Weeknight Meals,” co-host of a weekly segment on Milk Street radio and author of Home Cooking 101.

Stan Sagner is a writer and producer focused on the intersection of food and culture. He is also an independent media and food strategy consultant advising clients on market-entry, digital marketing and content strategy. He formerly served as Restaurant Critic and columnist for the New York Daily News and as Head of Visual Content & Strategy for Rodale. He is a graduate in Culinary Studies from the International Culinary Center in NY and has an MBA in Marketing and Management from Columbia Business School.

Steve Sorensen serves as Director of Center store for Lund Food Holdings Inc., which operates 27 Lunds & Byerlys grocery stores in and around the Minneapolis/St Paul marketplace. His career began in 1979 at a local Supervalu retailer as a part time stock clerk. In 1986 he joined Nash Finch Company in as a retail manager where he worked in various areas of operations, and merchandising. Steve Joined Lund Food Holdings in 1999 as a Category Manager and today is responsible for all aspects of Center store, including procurement, marketing, and logistics. Steve’s commitment to the specialty food business runs under the pillars of extraordinary food, exceptional service and passionate expertise to help create that sensational shopping experience that Lunds and Byerlys is known for.

Tina Ujlaki was the Executive Food Editor at Food & Wine until September 2016. In her 30+ years at the magazine, she had the pleasure of editing many of the most inspiring food writers and chefs, including Paula Wolfert, Jacques Pepin, Marcella Hazan, Julia Child, Barbara Tropp and Judy Rodgers. Tina currently works as a consultant and freelance editor.