About Us
Michael Whiteman
Michael Whiteman, president of Baum + Whiteman worldwide, is one of the country’s leading food and restaurant consultants. With partner Joe Baum, the team created six of New York’s three-star restaurants, including the magical Rainbow Room and legendary Windows on the World, Cellar in the Sky, Market Bar & Dining Room, Hudson River Club, and Aurora. They developed the world’s first food courts, and created high-profile concepts for Starwood Hotels, Taj Hotels, Raffles Hotel Group, the Regent of Sydney, Hotel Arts/Barcelona, and Equinox, a rooftop extravaganza in Singapore, named one of the best hotel dining rooms in the world. Working with the top names in architecture, design, and hospitality, the firm creates big ideas for diverse sections of the food industry -- from supermarkets to museums, from amusement parks to drinking bars.
Since 1970, Mr. Whiteman’s extensive travels have included Japan, Australia, India, Colombia, Spain, and Dubai, creating signature restaurants, luxury hotels, specialty food projects, museum dining, world-class clubs, and mixed-use development destinations. He is the founding editor of Nation’s Restaurant News, the industry’s most influential business publication, and is widely-known as an influential food trends pundit. His yearly Trends Report gets picked up all over the world.
A recipient of the prestigious FoodArts Silver Spoon Award and the Hospitality Professional of the Year Award, his work has been featured in the New York Times, Forbes, Business Week, Newsweek, USA Today, Chicago Tribune, Business Insider, Restaurant Hospitality, Restaurant Business, and numerous overseas publications.
A former Board member of the Culinary Institute of America, Project for Public Spaces, American Institute of Wine & Food, and the Greyston Foundation, he was the New York editor of “1001 Restaurants to Experience Before You Die,” and continues to lecture around the world.
Rozanne Gold is one of the most prominent women in the food world. An award-winning chef, author, journalist and restaurant consultant, she helped shape America’s culinary landscape as a pioneer in the food revolution that began in the 1970s.
A four-time winner of the James Beard Award and recipient of the Julia Child Award, she began her remarkable career at the age of 23 as first chef to New York Mayor Ed Koch. As Chef-Director of Baum + Whiteman, Ms. Gold helped create New York’s magical Rainbow Room, Windows on the World, and three of New York’s three-star restaurants, including the Hudson River Club where she helped launch today’s locavore movement.
Gold is the author of thirteen cookbooks, including the revolutionary 1-2-3 series that gave rise to the Minimalist column in the New York Times. Gold’s Radically Simple: Brilliant Flavors with Breathtaking Ease, was chosen as one of the most important cookbooks by The New York Times, Good Morning America, and People magazine; Cooking Light named it one of the most important books of the past 25 years.
A “food expert’s expert,” she set the Gold Standard for a style of cooking that inspired professional chefs and home cooks alike to “keep it simple.” A respected food-trends pundit, Ms. Gold invents concepts that give restaurants and food companies their competitive edge.
