Abby Swain
Temple Court | New York
October 2019
Abby Swain’s father’s sweet tooth inspired her to learn to bake and create his favorite treats. She taught herself the basics with a copy of the Joy of Cooking, and as soon as she was old enough, got a job at The Bridge Café in Frenchtown, New Jersey. Starting in front of house, she was encouraged to move to the kitchen and join the pastry line by her mentor, Ken Miller. After she graduated from high school, she dove into learning everything about pastry by completing a degree at the Culinary Institute of America in 2005 and then a certification in pâtisserie at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris. Returning to the states in 2007, she worked under Karen DeMasco at Tom Colicchio’s Craft before moving to Atlanta to help open Bakeshop with Jonathan St. Hilaire.
Realizing that she preferred the busy energy of a restaurant over the predictability of a bakery, she returned to New York City in 2011, rejoining Crafted Hospitality as a pastry chef for both Craft and Craftbar. In 2016, she took her first executive pastry chef position at Temple Court, Tom Colicchio’s fine-dining American restaurant within The Beekman Hotel in lower Manhattan. In this role, she is responsible for the breads, pastries, and desserts for Temple Court, The Bar Room, private events, and in-room dining at The Beekman.
