Emmy Winner, International Acclaimed Journalist, Executive Producer, Food & Travel Lover, and Creator of the Beloved show “Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives” David Page takes us deep into the world of chefs, restaurateurs, and everything “foodie” from the nationally and internationally awarded to the locally loved on Culinary Characters Unlocked. New episode every Tuesday.
All content for Culinary Characters Unlocked is the property of Culinary Characters Unlocked and is served directly from their servers
with no modification, redirects, or rehosting. The podcast is not affiliated with or endorsed by Podjoint in any way.
Emmy Winner, International Acclaimed Journalist, Executive Producer, Food & Travel Lover, and Creator of the Beloved show “Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives” David Page takes us deep into the world of chefs, restaurateurs, and everything “foodie” from the nationally and internationally awarded to the locally loved on Culinary Characters Unlocked. New episode every Tuesday.
Chef Yotaka “Sunny” Martin and her partner/husband on bringing her Thai cuisine to America and, with no restaurant experience, winning the 2025 James Beard Award for Best Chef Southwest
Culinary Characters Unlocked
42 minutes
3 months ago
Chef Yotaka “Sunny” Martin and her partner/husband on bringing her Thai cuisine to America and, with no restaurant experience, winning the 2025 James Beard Award for Best Chef Southwest
Chef Yotaka Martin had never heard of the James Beard awards until she was nominated for the 2024 competition. She grew up in a small village in the north of Thailand and has only been in the U.S a few years. But she is well aware now. She didn’t win last year but she was just named the 2025 James Beard Best Chef Southwest for her cooking at the Phoenix restaurant Lom Wong, which she runs with her husband Alex. They met after he visited Thailand while in college and fell in love with the country, then with her. Their travels throughout Thailand and elsewhere in Asia fueled their mutual love of food, and they developed a vast knowledge of
regional dishes rarely seen in the U.S., which they now feature. They are
committed to spreading not just food knowledge but also cultural understanding and encouraging the enjoyment of food to bring people together, which is a hallmark of Thai cuisine.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Culinary Characters Unlocked
Emmy Winner, International Acclaimed Journalist, Executive Producer, Food & Travel Lover, and Creator of the Beloved show “Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives” David Page takes us deep into the world of chefs, restaurateurs, and everything “foodie” from the nationally and internationally awarded to the locally loved on Culinary Characters Unlocked. New episode every Tuesday.
