Chef Tanya Holland

Known for her inventive take on modern soul food, as well as comfort classics, Tanya Holland is the executive chef/owner of the famous and beloved Brown Sugar Kitchen restaurants, located in the San Francisco Bay Area. The author of The Brown Sugar Kitchen Cookbook and New Soul Cooking, she competed on the fifteenth season of Top Chef on Bravo, and was the host and soul food expert on Food Network’s Melting Pot. A frequent contributor to the James Beard Foundation as a writer and chef, her Oakland, CA based Brown Sugar Kitchen has received multiple Michelin Bib Gourmand awards.

An in-demand public speaker and lecturer, Holland frequently leads the conversation on inclusion and equity in the hospitality industry.

Holland has served as the president of the prestigious Les Dames d’Escoffier San Francisco chapter, and was honored by the City of Oakland when June 5, 2012, was declared “Tanya Holland Day.” Holland was rewarded for her “Significant role in creating community and establishing Oakland as a culinary center.” A year later, Mayor Jean Quan awarded her the Key to The City. In 2013, Holland was award California Chef and Restaurateur of the Year by the California Tourism Board.

Tanya is speaking on Panel 2: Dining in 2030 - From SF to HK