Here at la officina de Zimmern, we love Top Chef.  Leah Cohen certainly brought a dash of drama to last season, but this talented culinista offers a lot more than tabloid fodder. Now executive chef at Centro Vinoteca, we spoke with Cohen about cooking in Italy, filling Anne Burrell's shoes and that infamous kiss with Top Chef winner, Hosea. 

AndrewZimmern.com: You come from a Filipino, Russian-Romanian Jewish family. How did that shape the way you ate growing up?   

Leah Cohen:  I think the Filipino part influenced me the most. I have been going to the Philippines since I was 5 years old. When we go to the Philippines we always stop somewhere else in Asia.  I was very lucky as a child to be exposed to so many different cultures and different kinds of cuisine

AZ.com:  After studying at the CIA, you spent over a year cooking in Italy.  How did that experience influence your cooking style? What do you miss most about living and working there? Anything you don’t miss at all?

LC:  Before going to Italy I don’t really think I had a cooking style. My experience in Italy really helped shape myself as a cook. What I miss the most about living in Italy is the culture, the food, the men, and the Vespas. I love Vespas and would really love to have one in NYC but its too dangerous (says my mom, not me).  I don’t miss is being the only person in a small town who spoke English and although I picked up the language rather quickly I was always wondering whether I was saying the right thing or not when having conversations in Italian.

AZ.com:  You stuck it out on Top Chef season five until the 12th episode.  Describe for our readers the things they don't see on T.V.  What's the schedule like? How did you audition? What was the routine?

LC:  Top Chef is really true to what you see on television.  The days are really long. There is a lot of what I like to call hurry up and wait. This basically means we would be in a rush to get somewhere and then once we got there we would be waiting around for a couple of hours, and then the whole process would start over.

A friend of mine knew someone who worked in the casting department for the show and I was able to send in my video, just like the other applicants.  I received a call and was flown to Los Angeles for a more formal interview and low and behold 2 weeks after that I was filming.

AZ.com:  Since the show, chef Anne Burrell left Centro Vinoteca, leaving you to fill the role as chef de cuisine. You’re now about six months in. What’s changed in the kitchen?

LC:  I had some pretty big shoes to fill once Anne left Centro. At first I was very overwhelmed with everything that came with running a kitchen. However, once I changed out some staff and had a solid crew behind me it became much easier. Centro is a lot different now from before. I have just introduced a new spring time menu that I am really excited about while leaving a couple of Anne’s signature dishes on the menu because they are really good. Also, I was just recently promoted to executive chef which I am extremely excited about.

AZ.com: What’s next for you?

LC:  I’m really trying to make a name for myself as a female chef here in New York City. I want to be respected in the industry and run a successful restaurant. Any other opportunities that may come my way I would be open to explore. But my heart/life is in the restaurant.

AZ.com:  Name your favorite places to grab a bite in New York.

LC:  Hagi, Yakitori Totto, Kyo Ya and Ippudo

AZ.com:  We gotta know: What’ going on with you and Top Chef winner Hosea?

LC:  Hosea and I are really good friends. That’s it. He lives in Colorado and I live in NY. It would never work out.

AZ.com:  What’s in your fridge?

LC:  Chef staples, beer, wine, water and hummus. I don’t ever eat at home. I live in a studio apartment in NYC and I have never cooked one meal there in the 4 years that I have lived in my apartment. I don’t want my clothes and bed to smell like food.

Leah Cohen is currently the executive chef at NYC's Centro Vinoteca. She also competed on Bravo's Top Chef Season Five.

Photo by Bart Rozyk.