The Instigator — Lee Anne Wong fuels the group with her bottomless knowledge of delicious food. No one understands better that the way to a happy group’s heart is through their stomach.

The self-proclaimed “Queen of Pork”, Lee Anne’s our own little culinary superstar who brings a lot more to the table than mere skill. We say little star because she’s a little person, but in terms of what she’s accomplished in the culinary world, she’s huge. A few tidbits to impress your foodie friends: she was the supervising culinary producer for Bravo’s “Top Chef” series and “Top Chef Masters” and was also a contestant on Season 1 of the show, and an integral part of the show’s huge success. But that’s more the end of the story than the beginning.

Wong’s an East Coast girl, from Troy, New York. She’s also a Far East girl, a second generation Chinese American who’s two parts pizza and burgers and two parts modern global fusion. She’s been slow cooked (Executive Chef of Event Operations at The French Culinary Institute), baked (worked in big-name restaurants all over the world), fried (International food fighter) and well seasoned (a media darling/producer/TV/Internet star).

She’s charitable, too. She participates in Women Chefs and Restaurateurs (WCR), James Beard, Project By Project – a volunteer based organization that supports Asian-American Non-profits, and she currently serves on the Board of Directors for The Gohan Society, dedicated to fostering US-Japanese culinary and cultural relations. One of her favorite places is The Culinary Vegetable Institute At The Chefs Garden in Milan, Ohio, where she does fundraisers for VEGGIE U, a program that educates children on how to grow vegetables and eat healthier. “It’s an excellent program that teaches young people where their food comes from and the benefits of eating vegetables. We touch upon the subjects of sustainability. They are amazing. The program is in 20 states in 2400 schools with kits that go out to the schools and kids get a chance to really see vegetables grow. Tons of schools are signed up for them and don’t have the funding for them so I am committed to helping find that.”

What’s next for the Wong way? She’s working on a food art book with notable photographer John Mark Sorum entitled “Sexy Food” (yes, she would put food, art and sex in one breath, hello) and is making Zeno Supper Club a reality with all she has to bring to the (excuse the repeated use of cliché) … table.

Stay tuned for Lee Anne’s recipes, coming soon….