Francisco Migoya currently is the Head Chef at Modernist Cuisine, in Bellevue Washington (www.modernistcuisine.com). Chef Migoya, was the owner and chocolatier at Hudson Chocolates in the Hudson Valley of New York, from March 2013 to June 2014. Hudson Chocolates was very successful, and a project from which he learned a lot, but he ultimately made the decision to close Hudson Chocolates to be reunited with his family. Prior to joining the Modernist Cuisine team, Francisco was a Professor at The Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York, where he taught since April of 2005 and in January 2007, he was named Faculty Member of the Year which recognizes excellence in teaching.
Migoya is the author of “The Elements of Dessert” (John Wiley and Sons, 2012), winner of the 2014 IACP Award in the Professional Category, “The Modern Café” (John Wiley and Sons, 2010), which was nominated for a James Beard award in the Cooking From a Professional Standpoint category in 2010, and “Frozen Desserts” (John Wiley and Sons, 2008).
Francisco has presented two research projects internationally with his colleague, Dr. Chris Loss:
- “New Flavor and Texture Interactions in Chocolate”, BCN Vanguardia, Barcelona, Spain, March 2012.
- “Leveraging textures in the pastry kitchen for developing innovative flavors and healthy dairy based desserts”, 7th NIZO Dairy Conference, Pappendal, Netherlands, September 2011.
- In addition, both of these projects were presented at the 2013 Eastern Psychological Association Convention in New York City, March 2013.
Francisco Migoya was named “Master Artisan Pastry Chef” in May of 2013 by the Pastry Guild of Barcelona, Spain. He was also named one of the Top Chocolatiers in America by Dessert Professional Magazine, one of Top Pastry Chefs in America in 2013 by The Huffington Post and in 2011 by Dessert Professional Magazine.
Previous to working at the CIA, Migoya was the Executive Pastry Chef for The French Laundry, Bouchon Bakery and Bouchon Bistro in Yountville, CA. He has also worked at a number of restaurants in New York City such as Veritas (pastry chef), Ilo (sous pastry-chef; now closed) and The River Café (pastry chef; Brooklyn).
He has a BA in Hotel and Restaurant Management from the CESSA University in Mexico City, Mexico. Additionally, he has a diploma of French Gastronomy from the École D’hotellerie et de Toursime, Strasbourg-Illkirch, France.
