Scott Cohen has been working in and around kitchens for almost fifty years. Scott is always seeking new opportunities to use his skills and energy feeding those who need it most, and he knows how to make stone soup!
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In the spring of 2023, Scott traveled to Ciudad Juárez, Mexico, cooking for 100s of migrants at a convent, shelter, and bringing food to a park. Working seven days a week, he prepared breakfast and dinners for almost a month.
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In August 2022, Scott traveled to Ukraine through Poland, finding work in a church sanctuary housing refugees in Western Ukraine outside Lviv. He served as chief cook and bottle washer for fifty families fleeing the war zones. Provisioning at local markets, Scott prepared and served from 75 to 200+ meals at a time, including full breakfast and dinners, seven days a week for a month.
In a nearby village, Scott manned a food truck, offering a full plate of roast lamb for hundreds of festival attendees celebrating Ukrainian Independence Day; funds raised were dedicated toward protective gear for their soldiers at the front lines. Featured on Ukrainian national TV newscasts, his experience provided nourishment and hope for those who needed it most, with social media exposure helping others better understand their plight.
Background
In the 1970’s, Scott began preparing meals for his family, refined his skills in Boy Scouts (he’s an Eagle Scout), and then manned various kitchen stations from prep to grill in pancake restaurants, steak houses, and catering companies. Scott has been hired to cook for private parties on both the east and west coasts of America and has provisioned and run the galley on boats in the British Virgin Islands, Costa Rica, and Australia. His travels have taken him to countries around the world; he’s a dedicated and multi-ethnic market shopper, knows how to stretch resources and work within a budget.
Culinary Resume
Scott has cooked at the following restaurants and non-profit organizations benefiting those who need a hot meal and a leg up (1974-2022):
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El Buen Samaritano (Albergue Para Migrantes): Provisioned and cooked for 120-150 migrants at shelter operated by Pastor Juan Fierro Garcia, Ciudad Juárez, Mexico 2023
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Casa Eudes: Provisioned and cooked for 50-60 woman & children migrants in convent, Ciudad Juárez, Mexico 2023
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Talbot Interfaith Shelter: Provisioned & cooked holiday meals for shelter residents in Easton, MD, 2022
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Stradch Ukrainian Pilgrimage Center: Provisioned, prepared and served plated breakfast and dinner for 50-75 refugees from eastern war zones, and hundreds of village congregants and pilgrims on weekends and festival days in Lviv Region, Ukraine, 2022
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Medium Rare/Feed the Fridge: CoVid inspired, restaurant-based non-profit preparing hundreds of meals at a time for the hungry at Thanksgiving and throughout the year, Washington DC, 2020-2021
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Neighborhood Coalition for Shelter: Shopped, prepared, cooked and served 100+ lunches and dinners to shelter residents, New York, NY, 1999-2019
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Burning Man/Life Cube Art Installations: Provisioned and prepared meals for crews of up to 150 people in the Black Rock desert, and in conjunction with community art installations across the country, 2011-2019
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FeedingNYC: Key staff member for non-profit feeding Thanksgiving dinner to thousands of shelter residents, organizing and managing 100s of volunteers; responsibilities from off-load to pack to delivery logistics and execution, 2001-2019
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Contestant on The Food Network game show ‘Ready, Set, Cook!’ (Winner) 1995
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Salvation Army: Prepared and served Christmas dinner for homeless, NYC/Bowery 1988
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Rogers House: Cooked and taught chef skills for a non-profit organization training those recently released from prison for food-service jobs, while serving meals they prepared to the public in a restaurant format, Rochester, NY 1978-1985
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Golden West Pancake House, Redwood City, CA 1976
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Leo’s Whistle Stop, San Mateo, CA 1976
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Valley Echo Catering, Rochester, NY 1974 - 1975
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Royal Scot Steak Restaurant, Rochester, NY 1974 -1975
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Perkins Pancake House, Rochester, NY 1974-1975
In addition to his experiences in the kitchen, Scott is the artist/founder of the Life Cube Project, an interactive public art installation infused with social action themes and methods. He has successfully managed teams of well over 200 people in both his business career and public art installations.