Pichet Ong

Pichet Ong Consulting - Washington, D.C.

Pichet Ong combines fond flavors of his childhood and travels with classic techniques to create sweet and savory foods that are pure, whimsical, and experimental, yet nostalgic.  His food can be found worldwide, from New York to Sydney, Istanbul to Beijing, Tokyo to Washington, DC.

Formerly an architect – with a Master’s Degree from the University of California at Berkeley – Ong is a self-taught chef. He is a Top Ten Pastry Chefs in America in Pastry Arts & Design. He’s been named “Rising Star” by Starchefs, a “Pastry Provocateur” by Pete Wells in Food & Wine. He has been featured in Saveur, W, Elle, Vogue, Tatler, and O, the Oprah magazine.  He headlined “The Chef” column in The New York Times for 8 weeks.

His desserts have received multiple 3-star reviews in The New York Times, a Michelin star, and placement in Pellegrino’s the Worlds 50 Best. Ong is a multiple nominee for the James Beard Award in different categories, and has been a judge on Food Network’s Sugar Dome, Cake Wars, Halloween Wars; Bravo’s Top Chef; and Netflix’s Explained. Ong’s book, The Sweet Spot, was on the “10 best” list in The New York Times, Gourmet, Publisher’s Weekly, and World Gourmand.

As a consultant, Ong has worked with clients including Jean Georges Vongerichten, Max Brenner, 7-11, Victoria’s Secrets, and Häagen-Dazs worldwide, as well as the opening of several culinary concepts including Coppelia, Toloache, Tao, Harbs Bakery, ABC, and Thai Diner.

In 2019, Ong was a finalist for the James Beard Award for Outstanding Pastry Chef. That year, he also opened Mama Chang with chef Peter Chang in Virginia which was named Best New Restaurant in Washington, DC by the Washington Post. In 2020 he became Executive Chef of Hotel Wailea, Maui, a Relais & Châteaux property. At the same time, he opened Nihao in Baltimore, a modern Chinese restaurant that was named #4 Best New Restaurant in America in Esquire and earned a James Beard Award nomination for Best New Restaurant in 2022. His third with the group, Chang Chang, was also named a BestNew Restaurant in Esquire, Eater, and the Washington Post. In 2024, he consulted with James Beard rising star nominee Paolo Dungca on opening Hiraya and Kayu in Washington DC.

Today, Pichet Ong is working to launch a line of baking mixes called Oh-So-Easy, and continues to work on a bean to bar Kad Kokoa in Thailand, as well as his upcoming single subject book on coconuts.