Kristen Kish
Kristen Kish was born in South Korea and adopted into a family in Kentwood, MI. At a young age she showed an affinity for cooking and, prompted by her mother, attended Le Cordon Bleu in Chicago.
After culinary school, Kristen moved to Boston where she worked in many high-profile restaurants including Chef Guy Martin’s Michelin-starred Sensing and Barbara Lynch’s Stir, where she oversaw all back of house operations, design and execution of nightly menus and demonstration dinners as the Chef de Cuisine.
From 2012 – 2013, Kristen competed on Bravo’s Top Chef season 10 where she ultimately won the coveted title.
From there, Kristen went on to co-host 36 Hours, a Travel Channel show that partnered with The New York Times to bring the hit newspaper column of the same name to television.
In October 2017, Kristen released her first cookbook, Kristen Kish Cooking: Recipes and Techniques and in 2018 she partnered with LINE Hotels to launch her first restaurant, Arlo Grey in Austin, TX. The restaurant reflects Kristen’s playful yet refined cuisine, pulling inspiration from her French and Italian cooking background as well as nostalgic dishes that highlights her upbringing and love of travel.
Kristen co-stars in Fast Foodies on truTV, is a co-host of Iron Chef: Quest for an Iron Legend on Netflix, and the host of Restaurants at the Edge of the World for Nat Geo.
