Danny Bowien

Chef + Restaurateur
United States

Avant-garde chef and culinary maverick. Founder of Mission Chinese Food.

  • Hometown New York
  • Occupation Chef + Restaurateur
Born in South Korea, but raised in Oklahoma City, Chef Danny Bowien has always lived between two worlds. Just like him, his food isn’t decidedly one thing or another, it’s an unexpected cross-cultural mash-up.
He started his culinary journey in San Francisco, where he was exposed to kimchi and the sensibility of farm to table cooking. He learned the trade both on the job, working at some of the city’s best restaurants and through a degree at the California Culinary Academy. Always a wunderkind, he unexpectedly won the World Pesto Championship in Genova at age 26.
Danny has always been a collaborator and hosted pop-ups well before they were commonplace. His much beloved Mission Chinese Food began as a temporary, turned permanent, concept at Lung Shan restaurant on San Francisco’s Mission Street. While at the helm, he went on to win multiple awards, including San Francisco Chronicle’s Best New Chef and Bon Appetit’s Best New Restaurant. After opening his first New York location he went on to receive The James Beard Foundation’s Rising Star Chef, and New York Times Restaurant of the Year. He has written two cookbooks and continues his never-ending quest for creativity and exploration through food.