Meet Chef Corina Johnson, Executive Chef at The Kitchen Denver
Corina Johnson has been around professional kitchens for most of her life. Literally. Before she was even tall enough to see over the prep table, she was tagging along to work and standing on a crate to flip pork chops on the line. Her childhood kitchen experiences were equal parts chaotic, funny and formative, and they sparked a curiosity about cooking that never went away.
That early curiosity grew into a career spanning more than 25 years. For Corina, the appeal has always been the same: the precision, creativity and challenge of getting something exactly right. She began her professional training as a pastry cook in San Francisco, working at Rubicon and Citizen Cake under celebrated chef Elizabeth Falkner. From there, she spent more than a decade in Seattle, working her way through some of the city's most respected kitchens, including Tilth with chef Maria Hines and Rover's and Loulay Kitchen & Bar with chef Thierry Rautureau. At Loulay, she led the pastry program during the restaurant's run as Seattle Met's Restaurant of the Year.
Over the years, Corina's career has taken her to kitchens across the country. She has consulted for 21c Museum Hotels, led kitchens at Boqueria in New York City and managed multi unit operations for Big Red F Restaurant Group in Denver. Through each experience, she has built a reputation for bringing a thoughtful eye, a high level of craft and a commitment to making every kitchen she enters a little better.
Today, Corina serves as Executive Chef at The Kitchen Restaurant Group, bringing decades of experience, curiosity and a serious appreciation for the details to everything we do. Most recently, she has put that experience to work refreshing the menu with a lineup of incredible summer dishes that are bright, seasonal and full of personality. Her new creations include Buffalo Burrata with heirloom melon, prosciutto, basil and Calabrian hot honey, along with Smashed Cucumber with forbidden black rice, radish, Fresno chili, fried shallots and yuzu dressing. It is the kind of food that reflects Corina's approach to cooking: thoughtful, unexpected and always focused on making every ingredient count. When she's not in the kitchen, you'll likely find her enjoying the Colorado outdoors on her fixed gear bike, hiking, kayaking or spending time with her retriever, Flapjack.
We're excited to have Corina leading the culinary team at The Kitchen and can't wait for you to taste what she's cooking up next.