Pierre Thiam

Pierre Thiam is a Senegalese chef, author, and social activist. Thiam is best known for bringing the West African cuisine to the world.

Based in California, Thiam is the founder of Pierre Thiam Group, which owns Teranga restaurants and Yolélé foods in the New York City. Yolélé, founded in 2017, is a food company that is centered on the Fonio, an ancient African super-grain. In addition, since 2015, Thiam serves as Executive Chef of the award-winning restaurant Nok by Alara in Lagos, Nigeria, and the Signature Chef of the Pullman Hotel in Dakar, Senegal. Thiam has authored several cookbooks, and in June 2024, he was inducted into the Cookbook Hall of Fame by James Beard Foundation Awards.

Biography
Thiam was born and raised in Dakar, Senegal. He attended Cheikh Anta Diop University for an undergraduate degree in chemistry and physics. In 1989, the college was closed, and Thiam moved to the United States to pursue his studies but when he landed in New York City, he began working in restaurants. By introducing African-inspired foods, he worked his way up to the chef de cuisine at Boom restaurant in New York in 2001.

Business Career
In 2001, Thiam founded Pierre Thiam Group in New York City, a food & beverage company that highlights the fusing of traditional West African flavors with modern production techniques. Through his group, Thiam has opened Teranga restaurants in New York City, Lagos and Dakar, he developed an array of food products with a company called Yolélé. He collaborated with Brooklyn Brewery’s Garrett Oliver on a series of wildly popular beers that incorporate African ingredients.

Since 2017, Thiam through Yolélé Foods has been known for producing and selling Fonio products in the United States. Fonio is an ancient West African super-grain mostly imported from Burkina Faso, Ghana, Mali and Senegal. Thiam believes that introducing Americans to the Fonio grain is simultaneously supporting sustainable and traditional agriculture in West African nations. He positions his project as part of a larger movement to elevate the economic power of African farmers, who for centuries have been suppressed by the Western hegemony in the global food system.

Social impact
Thiam is known for his philanthropic efforts and commitment to using his platform to impact the world positively. In 2022, Thiam with his partner Lisa started the non-profit L+P Foundation to “promote diverse, healthy, conscious food cultures across communities”. He is also an advocate for the importance of supporting farmers and underutilized crops grown in Africa and promoting food sustainability. Through his company Yolélé, Thiam exports Fonio to luxury grocery stores in the United States, which has helped bring economic opportunities to the region in West Africa where the grain is grown. Fonio is one of the oldest cultivated grains and was considered to be a peasant's food in West Africa.

Other considerations
Throughout his career as a chef, Thiam has helped to clear a pathway for authors and chefs such as Yewande Komolafe and Serigne Mbaye of Dakar NOLA in New Orleans. He has cooked for the King of Morocco, French President Emmanuel Macron, and Former UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon. He has authored four books including Simply West African, published in 2023.

Personal life
Thiam lives in California with his wife Lisa Katayama.

Recognitions

 * 2024: Thiam was inducted into the Cookbook Hall of Fame by James Beard Foundation Awards.