What do you do on a daily basis?
I work very closely with our purchasing assistant and director of food and beverage in supplying all of our chefs with food and food-related products (kitchen equipment), whether it be for talent, recipe developers, stylists, freelancers and whomever else needs culinary support coming through our kitchen — or in the tri-state area and beyond. What I do on a daily basis can easily change whether I am chasing down the freshest and most camera- worthy produce or proteins, or in the kitchen making sure everyone has what they need.

Who is your culinary icon?
Anthony Bourdain, Alton Brown and Miriam Garron (sous chef of Food Network Kitchen)

Who is your favorite food TV personality, past or present?
Sunny Anderson and Emeril

What’s your favorite cookbook?
I have many favorite cookbooks: Jerusalem by Yotam Ottolenghi, and Sami Tamimi is a recent one I love

What dish or ingredient will we never catch you eating?
Polenta

What’s your favorite condiment?
Rubra (Italian ketchup)

What’s the first dish you learned to make?
Honey Nut crunch cereal-baked chicken (my mother taught me)

Sweet tooth, salty tooth or both?
Both, more savory, but I enjoy both for sure.

What kitchen tool can’t you live without?
If you consider a nice big Le Creuset crock pot, then I can’t live without that key tool, for sure. I need it for braising those briskets, ribs, etc.

What music do you like to listen to in the kitchen?
I am usually listening to 92.7 (WMVY-Martha’s Vineyard). They have a good variety of chill tunes to get you through the day.

What’s your favorite food scene from a movie?
The opening scene of The Big Lebowski when “The The Dude” is walking through the supermarket dairy aisle and physically opens a milk carton to smell if it has gone bad. That always gives me a good laugh.

What’s your favorite alcoholic beverage?
Extra dirty vodka martini on the rocks with blue cheese-stuffed Spanish olives

If you weren’t in food, what career would you have liked to have tried?
A traveling journalist

What’s your favorite “food city” to visit?
Tel Aviv, Israel. I don’t get there enough, but there are no fresher vegetables and fruits beyond it in my opinion.