Pastry Chef Jessica Craig
Jessica Craig is from Suffolk County, NY which is where her cooking career began. Born to Jamaican parents, she started her career by attending culinary school at New York Institute of Technology in Central Islip, NY 2002-2004 before said campus closed in 2005.
Chef Craig began her career with an externship at Marriott Hotel in Islandia, NY. Here she quickly learned the importance of consistency and speed while mostly working an omelette station, banquet events, and creating any preparations needed by the kitchen.
Jessica moved on to work a variety of kitchen stations while simultaneously finishing her Associate Degree in Culinary Arts and Bachelor’s Degree in Hospitality Management. She landed her first pastry cook position in 2004 at Garden City Hotel in Garden City, NY.
Well aware of the high the cost of school tuition, Chef Jessica decided to work her way up the ranks to learn the art of pastry. She has had pastry cook roles in kitchens such as Collins & Main Restaurant in Sayville, NY and City Cellar Restaurant in Westbury, NY. Then she landed her first Pastry Sous Chef role in 2008 at Nick & Toni’s Restaurant in East Hampton, NY.
Lemon Meringue Tartlets
While living and working in the Hamptons she learned about Italian and Mediterranean cuisine, the importance of sourcing local and sustainable ingredients, as well as how to manage the pastry program for a restaurant group containing 5 restaurants at the time. Eventually, Jessica became the Executive Pastry Chef of the group in 2010 after learning from two amazing pastry chefs.
Once Chef Craig learned all that she felt she could learn having worked in the Hamptons for close to six years, she moved to Manhattan in December of 2013. She was excited to further grow her pastry skills working for restaurant groups such as Altamarea Group and Noho Hospitality before landing her role as Executive Pastry Chef at L’Artusi Restaurant in the West Village of Manhattan in 2017.
During her time at L’Artusi Restaurant she was written about in blogs and publications such as Essence Magazine, NY Times, Wine Spectator, Pastry Arts Magazine, Michelin Guide, Cuisine Noir and La Cucina Italiana. She has been featured on podcasts such as One Woman Kitchen with Rozanne Gold and Food & Wine's Communal Table Podcast with Kat Kinsman. Chef Jessica has also competed in shows such as Chopped Season 45 Episode 5, as well as Bong Appetite cooking competition season which aired in April 2019 where she won the episode.
Most recently since moving on from L’Artusi in 2020, Chef Jessica has participated on a panel on the topic of Food Beyond Borders in the fall of 2022 for the Hearst Black Culture Summit. In Spring of 2023 she taught a dessert masterclass in Lagos, Nigeria for the GTCO Food and Drink Festival. Chef Craig is also a member of Les Dames d’Escoffier New York as of fall 2022.
Chocolate Financier with Chocolate Mousse, Candied Hazelnuts and Gently Roasted Figs
Chocolate Cheesecake with Almond Caramel, Candied Slivered Almonds, Fresh Strawberries, and Chocolate Lace Tuile