FoodNetwork Site Search Results

Ron Ben-Israel, the chef and owner of one of the country’s finest couture cake studios, started his confectionery adventures after a 15-year career as a professional modern dancer. Upon retiring from performing with companies spanning three continents, he used his art schooling and ballet training to master the discipline of pastry arts. After apprenticeships and engagements in Toronto and Lyon, France, Ron was led to New York City. In 1996 his cakes were discovered while on display in the windows of Mikimoto on Fifth Avenue, and commissions quickly followed from Villeroy & Boch, Baccarat, De Beers, Bloomingdale's and Bergdorf Goodman. In 1999 Ron established his flagship design studio and bakery in Manhattan's fashionable SoHo neighborhood. In addition to an extensive list of private clients, many of New York's premiere hotels are also devotees, including The Pierre, The St. Regis, The New York Palace, The Ritz-Carlton, The Waldorf Astoria, The Four Seasons and Mandarin Oriental. His cakes have been featured in destinations throughout the continental U.S. and abroad, and they continue to be a staple in the luxury industry. Ron's confectionary creations have been featured in The New York Times, New York Magazine, Town and Country, People, New York Post, New York Daily News, Martha Stewart Weddings, In Style, Modern Bride, Bridal Guide, Elegant Bride, Glamour, Cosmopolitan, The Knot, Time Out and Vogue Magazine, to name a few. Ron was named "Best Baker" by Vogue Magazine and was declared Martha Stewart's favorite cake maker. He continues to regularly contribute to Martha Stewart's eponymous magazine and TV shows, and their collaboration was highlighted in Martha Stewart Weddings' 20th anniversary issue. Many books have celebrated his cakes, including Vera Wang on Weddings, Kate Manchester's The Perfect Wedding Cake, Bette Matthews' For Your Wedding: Cakes and Joan Hamburg's City Wedding. He has also been fictionalized as a featured character in The New York Times' best-selling novel Shopaholic Ties the Knot by Sophie Kinsella, and Zagat has published glowing reviews on Ron's confections for the past 10 years. Some of Ron's most-well-known cakes include The Plaza's 100th birthday cake — an exact confectionery replica of the famed New York landmark measuring more than 12 feet tall and serving 1,500 guests as well as the trendsetting Sex and the City 2 cake in partnership with Swarovski. Ron has served as both host and judge of Food Network's Sweet Genius, and he is a judge on the series Cake Wars and Halloween Baking Championship. He has also has appeared as a guest and judge on a variety of Food Network shows, including Chopped, Guy's Grocery Games and Worst Cooks in America. In addition to being on Food Network, Ron and his work have appeared on numerous television shows, including The Oprah Winfrey Show, Bravo's Top Chef: Just Desserts and The Late Show with David Letterman (CBS). Ron has traveled across the U.S. and internationally as a teacher, lecturer and motivational speaker. He is a popular headliner and guest at culinary and pastry conventions, as well as a featured speaker at fundraisers supporting a variety of causes. Ron also is the only Guest Master Pastry Chef at the renowned International Culinary Center in New York City, where he shares his passion, techniques and secrets with the students through exclusive demos. Ron is a proud member of City Harvest’s Food Council and its Advisory Board, which brings together more than 60 of New York City’s top chefs, restaurateurs and food industry professionals to aid the organization in the fight against hunger. Ron also is an active supporter of Lambda Legal Defense and is an advocate of same-sex marriage.

Ask Chef Marc Murphy where he grew up and he'll fire off a list of cosmopolitan destinations — Milan, Paris, Villefranche, Washington, D.C., Rome and Genoa — "and that's before I turned 12," he'll explain. This dizzying list of hometowns served as an excellent education in French and Italian cuisine, though as a teenager this was not his first passion. When the reality hit that he didn't have the funds to become a professional racecar driver, Marc followed his brother to the Institute of Culinary Education. After graduation he apprenticed at restaurants in France and Italy before returning to New York, where he landed a job as a line cook at Terrance Brennan's Prix Fixe. He stayed there for almost two years, working his way through every station in the kitchen and forging a professional bond with Brennan’s Sous Chefs Joseph Fortunato and David Pasternak. Eager to return to Europe, Marc flew to Paris and landed a position at the one-star Le Miraville, where he stayed for one-and-a-half years. Afterward, he staged at the famed Louis XV in Monte Carlo, where Executive Chef Alain Ducasse was so impressed with Marc's skills that he personally made arrangements for him to work with Sylvain Portay at Le Cirque once he returned to the States. Marc still considers Portay to be his greatest teacher. "Sylvain was above all concerned with coaxing out the most-vibrant, interesting flavors any ingredient had to offer, yet he insisted on minimal manipulation," he recalls. Following Le Cirque, Fortunato tapped him to work as a sous chef at Layla, Drew Nieporent's Middle Eastern fantasy in Tribeca, where he met consultant Georges Masraff. When Masraff joined forces to open Cellar in the Sky at Windows on the World, he recruited Marc to serve as executive chef. After receiving critical acclaim, including a two-star review from The New York Times, Marc headed uptown to serve as executive chef of La Fourchette, where NYT critic Ruth Reichl awarded him another glowing two-star review, citing his "open desire to transform food [so that] in his hands, even a simple green salad ... looks like a ruffled hat in a painting by Renoir." In March 2004 Marc opened his first solo enterprise with Landmarc [Tribeca], which won rave reviews both for its eclectic French and Italian menu as well as its highly untraditional wine list. Following its success, Marc opened Ditch Plains in the West Village in 2006 serving casual, beach-style cuisine such as lobster rolls, fish tacos and the infamous ditch dog, as well as other comfort food favorites. In 2007 Marc was given the opportunity to open another Landmarc restaurant in the pres­tigious Time Warner Center, where he brought his bistro-style cuisine midtown. In October 2013 Marc opened Kingside at the Viceroy New York hotel on New York's iconic West 57th Street, serving his interpretation of New American cuisine. Marc's restaurants now fall under the Benchmarc Restaurants by Marc Murphy name, where he acts as executive chef and owner. In addition to the restaurants, Marc also heads up the company's catering division, Benchmarc Events by Marc Murphy, where his signature style of accessible contemporary cuisine transcends the boundaries of what is offered in his restaurant locations. Today Marc's involvement in the industry moves beyond the restaurants as well, with a regular role as a judge on Food Network's top-rated hit Chopped as well as appearances on other hit series such as Guy's Grocery Games, Beat Bobby Flay and Worst Cooks in America. Marc also appears on The Rachael Ray Show and The Today Show, among others. He is the president of the Manhattan chapter of the New York State Restaurant Association, a board member of City Harvest, Culintro and Passport NYC at the 92nd Street Y Culinary Camp, as well as a member of the Food + Finance High School's Industry Advisory Board, a member of the Leadership Council for Share our Strength's No Kid Hungry campaign and the national spokesperson for Share Our Strength's Dine Out For No Kid Hungry. In 2012 Marc joined the U.S. Department of State's Diplomatic Culinary Partnership, where he takes part in public diplomacy programs that engage foreign audiences abroad as well as those visiting the United States. Marc's first cookbook, Season with Authority: Confident Home Cooking, was released in 2015.