With a Ph.D. in Food Studies from New York University, Mitchell Davis is founder of the consultancy Kitchen Sense, LLC, a laboratory for creative food content and innovative food-system solutions at the intersection of gastronomy, culture, and politics. He serves as Chief Picnic Officer of the Jewish Food Society, where in 2025 he successfully launched The Great Nosh, a new food and culture festival in New York City to help bridge diverse communities.
Davis is an advisor to the Florence University of the Arts in Italy, the cultural center Asif: Culinary Institute of Israel, the Nanro Foundation in Seoul, Korea, and the Annenberg Foundation Trust at Sunnylands in Palm Springs, California. Davis spent nearly three decades at the prestigious James Beard Foundation in NYC, leaving in the role of Chief Strategy Officer, and is a former Academy Chair for the London-based World’s 50 Best Restaurants. He is also an IACP award-winning author of five cookbooks and a James Beard Award-nominated food journalist.
He writes a weekly newsletter on Substack called Kitchen Sense and was host of the two popular food podcasts: What’s Burningand Taste Matters. You can follow him on Instagram @kitchensense.