113 Ludlow St
Lower East Side
New York
10002-32
tel: 212-353-8866
Website: http://www.kumainn.com/
King Phojanakong is the chef-owner of two of NYC’s favorite restaurants, Kuma Inn in Manhattan’s Lower East Side and Umi Nom in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn. King is a New York native whose culinary influences began at home with the inspirational cooking of his Filipino mother and Thai father. Spending summers in the Philippines throughout his childhood furthered his interest in the culinary world and instilled the importance of community and culture.
A graduate of the Bronx High School of Science and The City College of New York, he first pursued a career in energy management before deciding food and hospitality were his calling. King received his formal culinary education from the Culinary Institute of America, where he was elected group leader, selected as one of the “10 Best Student Chefs of the Year” and graduated dean’s list in 1998.
King went on to work with Daniel Boulud at Restaurant Daniel and David Bouley at the Danube. Other kitchen stints include: Bouley Bakery, Jean-Georges, The Grocery, Cendrillon and Fatapples. He opened Kuma Inn in May 2003 and Umi Nom in late Summer 2009. King has been a featured chef on Bravo, The Food Network, The Cooking Channel, HGTV and PBS.
King works to support several charities focusing his efforts on hunger relief and culinary education including Spoons Across America, City Harvest, Healthy Kids and Grand Street Settlement. He has been an active member of the advisory board of Streets International, a New York based charity located in Hoi An, Vietnam that prepares street kids and disadvantaged youth for a career in the hospitality industry and Kelly Street Restoration, a Bronx based group working to provide accessible and healthy fresh food to local residents using the community garden and local farms.
In June 2010, Chef King was invited to the White House to join First Lady Michelle Obama’s Chefs Move to Schools anti-obesity campaign to help schools serve more nutritious, tastier meals.