Thank you to all of our Official Judges (2015 to 2018) who graciously donated their time and talents to our Competitions (hover over each pic for their bio)!
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ALAN CAMPOS ARROYO is Regional Executive Chef of Neiman Marcus. He recently oversaw the opening of Café on 3, Neiman Marcus’ first (largely) plant-based café, in Beverly Hills, CA, USA. Alan was previously Sous Chef at Plant Food and Wine in Los Angeles, and also worked at Mesa Verde in Santa Barbara. Current offerings at Café on 3 include a Wild Mushroom Toast with Black Garlic Truffle Cashew Cream with Caramelized Onions, and a Little Gem Caesar Salad with Caper Berries and Sourdough Croutons. This noteworthy opening of a predominantly plant-based café in a major luxury department store has been covered in publications including One Green Planet, Viva Glam Magazine, VegNews, and LiveKindly, and Alan plans to execute more plant-based restaurants throughout the company.
Vegan Black Metal Chef is a YouTube personality, chef, musician, and advocate for compassionate vegan living. His YouTube videos showing him preparing vegan dishes while singing the recipe have been viewed millions of times. His Vegan Pad Thai video alone has over 3 million views. VBMC is also author of The Seitanic Spellbook – Recipes and Rantings of the Vegan Black Metal Chef. The introduction to his cookbook contains the words, “I will not stop showing the world how good, easy, cheap, and wise the vegan path is, for as long as I live. Until every cage is empty.”
SOOZEE NGUYEN is Chef and Owner of The Wild Chive (inside MADE by Millworks in Long Beach, CA, USA), which serves Vegan Brunch every Sunday morning and Dinner on Thursday evenings. In 2017, TWC was named LA’s Best Vegan Brunch by VegOutLA, and Best Vegan Grilled Cheese Sandwich in LA by Buzzfeed. Soozee was previously Executive Chef of Black Flamingo, and Head Chef at Brooklyn’s Champs Diner, both in New York. She incorporates the tastes of her childhood and reinterprets comfort foods from across globe in her menu with items such as the Monte Cristo and Banh Mi Bowl. Soozee and her creations have been featured in numerous publications including VegNews, TimeOut New York, Chickpea Magazine, Beach City Food Tours, Gothamist, OC Weekly, and Long Beachize.
TARA PUNZONE is chef and owner of PURA VITA, A Plant-Based Italian restaurant and wine bar in west hollywood, ca, usa. She was the Culinary Director of Real Food Daily, with locations in West Hollywood, Pasadena, and Terminal 4 at LAX. In May of 2017 under her direction, RFD took the #1 spot in a listing of the Best Vegan Brunches in the United States by VegNews Magazine. She has been vegan since the age of 10. Tara is also the former Executive Chef of Pure Food and Wine, a fine dining raw vegan restaurant in New York City. She holds a Masters of Fine Arts degree from Long Island University in New York, as well as a BFA in Photography from The School of Visual Arts New York.
EARVIN LOPEZ is the Owner of Vegan By Victoria’s, a Mexican bakery (panaderia) in Santa Ana, CA, USA. In his own words in an interview by Mercy for Animals, “I veganize all Mexican sweet bread (Pan Dulce). I just take out all the cruelty and make it vegan”. Earvin also bakes a wide variety of Mexican comfort desserts and treats, including bolillos, tres leches cake, strawberry besos (sandwich cookies), flan, puerquitos, and smiley face galletas. He has been featured in the LA Times, LiveKindly, and more. He often travels to vegan pop-ups and events in the Inland Empire, Los Angeles, and San Diego to bring his food to a wider audience. Earvin aspires to show that going vegan doesn’t mean giving up cultural traditions, and is committed to spreading veganism to the Latin community, one concha at a time.
IAN BEACH is Executive Chef and Chef Instructor at Exhibit (Santa Ana, CA, USA), the student-run restaurant at The Art Institutes of California Orange County. Ian grew up in Scotland, UK, and
graduated from the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York. He has worked in 4-star and Michelin-rated restaurants across the country. In addition to his impressive culinary
background, Ian was bass guitarist for the 80’s & 90’s alternative rock band The Buck Pets, who toured with artists such as The Ramones, Jane’s Addiction, and Neil Young.
KRYSTEN LITTLES is the Chef Owner of Baby Love Sweetery, a 100% vegan mobile bakery based in Los Angeles, CA, USA. She is originally from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and graduated from Drexel University. Her first lessons in baking came from her mother. BLS made their debut at the 2016 LA Vegan Street Fair with their unique “Cuppy Cake Kabob”, a skewer of frosted mini-cupcakes with flavors such as Churros n’ Cream, Chocolate Salted Caramel, and Strawberry Lemonade.
DANIEL MATTOS is Chef Director of Culinary Arts & Hospitality at Orange County School of the Arts in Santa Ana, CA, USA. He previously taught health-supportive vegetarian cooking courses integrating classical cooking techniques at the Natural Gourmet Institute in New York City. He holds degrees in both Culinary Arts and Food Service Entrepreneurship from Johnson & Wales University in Providence, Rhode Island, and has served as Chef de Cuisine and Executive Chef in
prestigious restaurants and hotels across the country.
JARA FONSECA is Pastry Chef at the 100% vegan restaurant Seabirds Kitchen in Costa Mesa, CA, USA. She graduated from the Culinary Institute of the Pacific at KCC in Honolulu, Hawaii with a degree in
Culinary and Patisserie. She worked as a Baker for Down To Earth Organic & Natural, a well-known all-vegetarian chain of markets in Hawaii. Jara is currently in the beginning stages of starting her own business. She was the Best of Show Winner at the 2015 SoCal VegFest Vegan Cupcake Competition with her Lemon Cupcakes with Lavender Frosting.
Tanya Petrovna is the Chef Owner of Chef Tanya’s Kitchen, an all-vegan deli in Palm Springs, CA, USA. CTK also offers menu consulting, catering for private events, cooking classes, and other customized culinary services. Tanya was the visionary Founder, Chef, and CEO of the vegan chain restaurant, Native Foods Café (she is no longer associated with NFC). She is also author of The Native Foods Restaurant Cookbook, and has appeared on Food Network, and been featured in numerous publications.
Jackie Sobon is the author of two cookbooks, Vegan Yack Attack On the Go and Vegan Bowl Attack. She is also a food photographer and recipe writer for VegNews Magazine. Jackie is the force behind the highly acclaimed vegan blog Vegan Yack Attack, known for its original vegan recipes and gorgeous photography. In addition to VegNews, her work has been featured in ChickPea Magazine, One Green Planet, and numerous other publications. She is also credited with coining the food bloggers mantra, “Camera Eats First”.
Return to the 2019 SoCal VegFest Vegan Cupcake Competition Registration Page