ABOUT LEAH
Leah Cohen is the chef and owner of Pig & Khao, with two locations in Manhattan, and Piggyback by Pig & Khao in Midtown. The menus at Pig & Khao celebrate Southeast Asian flavors influenced by Leah’s Filipino upbringing and her annual trips to the region. Acclaimed by publications including the New York Times, New York Magazine, and The Huffington Post, Pig & Khao has been praised for its Asian street food-inspired menu, casual, inviting vibe, and inventive bar program. Recipient of a 2013 StarChefs Rising Stars Award, Leah’s main cooking philosophy is to stay true to authentic Southeast Asian flavors while incorporating classical western techniques. To experience Leah’s cooking at home, check out her first cookbook, Lemongrass & Lime, and follow her on Instagram @leahscohen for great at home recipes.nd owner of popular Lower East Side restaurant Pig & Khao and Piggyback by Pig & Khao in Midtown Manhattan. Opened in fall 2012, Pig & Khao is an intimate, 74-seat restaurant serving Southeast Asian cuisine influenced by Leah’s Filipino upbringing and her annual expeditions to the region. Pig & Khao has earned acclaim from publications including the New York Times, New York Magazine, and The Huffington Post, celebrated for its Asian-inspired street, casual, friendly vibe, and inventive bar program. Recipient of a 2013 StarChefs Rising Stars Award, Leah’s main cooking philosophy is to stay true to authentic Southeast Asian flavors while incorporating classical western techniques. To experience Leah’s food at home, check out Lemongrass & Lime, her first cookbook or follow her on Instagram @leahscohen for great at home recipes. You can also catch her on Food Network, where she is a frequent contributor.
FOODIE BEGINNINGS...
Leah’s earliest memories revolve around food. The child of a Filipino mother and Romanian- Jewish father, Leah was raised with the traditions of both cultures. Her early kitchen memories include learning how to make Chicken Adobo and Lumpia with her mother and helping her grandmother prepare brisket and matzo ball soup for the Jewish holidays. As she grew older, Leah’s mother entrusted her with the responsibility of preparing rice, a staple of Filipino cuisine, for the evening meal, a task she tackled upon returning home from school each day. In her spare time, Leah began experimenting with different ingredients she found in the kitchen, creating new dishes and becoming completely enthralled by the process. After graduating from high school, Leah held a few food-focused jobs, working as a pizza delivery driver and potato-peeler at a local Italian restaurant. Her passion evolved into a career when she was accepted by the prestigious Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY in 2001.
ASIA CALLING...
Competing on “Top Chef” not only introduced Leah to a national audience, it also forced her to define her own style of cooking. Leah left the Italian restaurant where she was Chef de Cuisine and spent a year exploring and working in Southeast Asia. She cooked in restaurants throughout Hong Kong, Thailand, Cambodia, and was exposed to food in all its forms, from molecular gastronomy to Chinese cooking, and developed a true understanding of the flavors and elegant nuances of Asian food and ingredients.
Her year in Asia proved to be a defining moment, and upon her return to New York Leah decided to open her first restaurant, Pig & Khao. In January 2020, she opened Piggyback by Pig & Khao, taking inspiration from nearly all of Asia—from Vietnam and Malaysia to Thailand, Singapore, and the Philippines—based on her immersive culinary travels throughout the continent. Her menu at Piggyback by Pig & Khao is reflective of the traditional recipes, ingredients, and cooking techniques she learned firsthand working in kitchens throughout Asia—and reintroduced her to the deliciously sweet, pungent, and spicy flavors of her youth.
Leah continues to find culinary inspiration through her travels, and helms the kitchen with the help of her husband, Manager of Operations for both restaurants, Ben Byruch. Ben and Leah currently reside in New Jersey with their two boys, Carter Graham and Baker Scott.
ABOUT BEN
Ben has spent the majority of his life in the restaurant industry. With positions ranging from dishwasher to Manager of Operations, he’s become accustomed to it all. During Ben’s teenage years in Pennsylvania, his father and grandfather were the proprietors of a wholesale meats company, later taking on a sales management position for wholesale food distributorship. After high school, he attended Penn State for several years before deciding to pursue his degree from the Art Institute of Philadelphia with a concentration in Restaurant Management & Culinary Arts.
Ben spent the next several years in Philadelphia, working in various restaurant-related capacities and ultimately owning and operating his own concept. Eventually, it was time to make moves and New York was the destination. In order to make his final move to the financial management side of the business he spent 2 years working at a boutique investment bank and learning the ins and outs of managing businesses, raising capital, and dealing with investors. He then went on to re-immerse himself in the restaurant business but in a new city.
After joining the Pig & Khao team as Sous Chef, Ben found himself filling an ever-increasing number of roles, eventually becoming Operations Manager. In his current position, Ben oversees every aspect of Pig & Khao and Piggyback by Pig & Khao’s day-to-day business activity and operation. And the integral role as husband and partner to Leah and father to their boys, Carter Graham and Baker Scott.