The Culinary Collective is a vegetable forward pop-up dinner series launched by Chef Jay Astafa + Chef Angela Lowe.

New York City-based Chef Jay Astafa specializes in innovative vegetable-forward cuisine. Immersed in the world of food from a young age — thanks to his father’s Farmingdale eatery 3 Brothers Pizza Café — it comes as no surprise that today Astafa finds himself at the helm of a much buzzed about boutique catering company. 

The 22-year-old vegan genius first discovered his calling in 2007, at the tender age of 15: Inspired by a PETA PSA, Astafa swiftly identified cooking as the proper avenue for activism. At 16 he developed a modest menu for 3 Brothers, featuring 100% plant-based dishes, and mere months later expanded it due to popular demand. The New York Timespublished a compelling piece in November 2009, highlighting the establishment’s shift towards cruelty-free fare, with Astafa front and center. It’s been uphill for him ever since. 

In 2011 he enrolled at the Natural Gourmet Institute, followed in 2013 by the International Culinary Center, where he studied restaurant management. He hosted a successful two-night pop-up dinner in April 2013, at Manhattan’s Old Bowery Station, which he foresaw as the springboard for his own brick-and-mortar. However, the catering requests started rolling in, business took off and the pieces fast fell into place. 

Chef and owner of jay astafa catering since May 2013, Astafa remains the in-house vegan chef at 3 Brothers, dividing his time between the Long Island kitchen and gigs throughout the Tri-state area and beyond. In addition to these endeavors, he has been invited to compete on TV, appearing in April 2014 on Food Network’s Rewrapped, and go up against the best and brightest in the biz, winning Vegan Iron Chef in San Francisco in March 2014. PETA has likewise recognized Astafa for his pizza prowess: 3 Brothers’ “The Works” pizza has twice been a top ten Best Vegan Pizza winner, in February 2015and April 2011.

 Astafa has worked alongside celebrity Chef Roberto Martin, Chef Mary Mattern (Nom Yourself) and Chef Jason Stefanko (Gardein). He’s catered for media mogul Russell Simmons and wowed the elite New York Fashion Week scene. Beyond events with brands like KeVita, he’s donated to or reduced rates for nonprofits such as Farm Sanctuary, Mercy for Animals and Positive Tails. He’s also styled food for TV and movie sets. To be expected, his bespoke creations have impressed many a guest at weddings, baby showers, bar and bat mitzvahs, corporate parties and birthday celebrations. The list goes on. 

 Recent enterprises include catering a dinner at alma mater NGI in advance of the New York Vegetarian Food Festival, as well as embarking on an upscale pop-up dinner series, the Culinary Collective, hosted at a Brooklyn townhouse in partnership with Chef Angela Lowe.  

 For more on Chef Jay Astafa and his eponymous catering company, please visit his site.

 www.chefangelalowe.come

Erin Red is a career Vegan Advocate and Animal Activist best known for her distinctive vegan podcast, Red Radio.  Originally hailing from Toronto, Canada, Red emerged on the vegan scene in 2011, establishing a vegan blog and generating buzz through various social media outlets and community events.  Not long after debuting Red Radio to rave reviews from vegans and not-yet-vegans alike, she co-founded and produced The Seed: A Vegan Experience in 2012, a hugely successful two-day vegan festival in SoHo.  Later that same year, Red completed Victoria Moran’s Main Street Vegan Academy and became a Certified Vegan Lifestyle Coach and Educator (VLCE) and Vegan Nutrition Specialist, furthering her knowledge and expertise in the field.

 Magic happened in early 2013 when Red was introduced to Chef Jay Astafa, and the two have worked in tandem ever since, proving outstanding service and an unparalleled vegan dining experience for clients all over the United States.  Hailed as his Right Hand Woman, Red enthusiastically and diligently supports Chef Jay's culinary innovation both front of house and back, tackling everything from event coordination to kitchen prep to hosting and much more.  

 As Maître d' and Emcee for The Culinary Collective, Red is thrilled to join forces with renowned vegan Chef Angela Lowe to create a fresh and inventive avenue for what she likes to call "culinary activism" and encouraging a motivated, ubiquitous vegan community.

www.erinred.com   | Twitter