AAPI Month
Chef Collaborations at Nisei
AAPI Month at Nisei is an annual series honoring Asian American and Pacific Islander voices through collaborative dinners and shared storytelling on the plate. Each event brings together chefs whose personal histories, cultural influences, and modern techniques create a thoughtful dialogue between heritage and contemporary cuisine.
The 2026 AAPI Month program is currently in development. Participating chefs, event dates, reservation details, and community partners will be announced closer to the start of the series.
As with past programs, AAPI Month at Nisei is designed not only as a celebration of food, but as a platform to uplift AAPI communities through collaboration, education, and giving.
Chef Aisha Ibrahim, Canlis (Seattle)
Food & Wine Best New Chef 2023
Born in the Philippines and raised in West Virginia, Chef Aisha Ibrahim found cooking after a college sports injury shifted her path. She trained at Le Cordon Bleu San Francisco and cooked at Aqua, Commis, and Manresa. A pivotal mentorship with Eneko Atxa led her to Spain at Azurmendi and then to Aziamendi in Phuket as Chef de Cuisine. She continued to refine her voice in Thailand, Singapore, and Japan, staging at Kagurazaka Ishikawa, L’Effervescence, and RyuGin. After plans to open a restaurant in Bangkok were disrupted by the pandemic, she accepted the role of Executive Chef at Canlis in Seattle, where her partner Samantha Beaird works in R&D. In 2023 she was named a Food & Wine Best New Chef.
Chef Ki Chung, Bar Maze (Honolulu)
Head Chef
Born in Incheon and raised in the Bay Area, Chef Ki Chung’s earliest kitchen education came from watching his grandmother cook. He later studied at The Culinary Institute of America and staged at The French Laundry, Manresa, Benu, The Fat Duck, and Jean-Georges. At Aubergine in Carmel he rose to become the restaurant’s first Chef de Cuisine and helped earn a Michelin star, a Forbes five-star ranking, and a top-15 OAD placement in North America. He now leads the kitchen at Bar Maze in Honolulu, shaping a cuisine that reflects craft, seasonality, and cultural roots.
Chef Timothy Jacob (San Francisco)
Most recently Co-CDC, Lazy Bear
Chef Timothy Jacob began in Phoenix at T. Cook’s before moving to San Francisco in 2015 to cook at Flour + Water. He joined the team at Lazy Bear in 2016, at the time a one-star Michelin restaurant, and advanced through the ranks. Lazy Bear later earned a second star and in 2020 Jacob took on Chef de Cuisine responsibilities alongside Taylor Zoller, now his wife. In 2025 he departed to develop his next chapter, refining a perspective rooted in Filipino-American experience and Bay Area seasonality.
Chef Lordfer Lalicon, Kaya (Orlando)
James Beard Semifinalist 2025 · Michelin Green Star
Chef Lordfer Lalicon is Executive Chef and co-owner of Kaya, a 2024 James Beard nominee for Best New Restaurant and Florida’s first Michelin Green Star recipient. With more than 20 years in kitchens including Blue Hill, Carbone, The Oak Room, and Maharlika, he helped shape Orlando’s dining scene with Kappo and later Kadence. A champion of family and community, he supports culinary education through the Edible Education Experience while guiding Kaya with a produce-first ethos and Filipino spirit.
