CHEF JACOB NGUYEN

Growing up in Portland, Maine, Jacob learned about Vietnamese culture and food through his mother's side of the family. It wasn't until the pandemic that he fully embraced learning to cook out of necessity and realized how much he loved and was driven by it. Jacob's first culinary gig was at the famed Greenpoint-based eatery Di An Di. From then on, he proceeded to work at some of the most renowned restaurants in New York, including Eleven Madison Park (3 Michelin Stars), HAGS (James Beard Semifinalist), and Oxalis (1 Michelin Star). Jacob is currently a freelance private chef and runs an ongoing Viet-centric pop-up dinner series called Thần Thái.