Cristina Bowerman

Chef at Glass Hostaria* (Rome, Italy)

The world as her stage, territory and tradition as her values, and female power in the kitchen determine Cristina Bowerman's philosophy of gastronomy and life.

Cristina Bowerman was born in Cerignola, Puglia into a family with an international vocation. A characteristic which this chef has inherited. She speaks four languages, and after studying law she went to live in the United States to get a better grip on a culture that fascinated her. The variety of nationalities she found there, along with all their different tastes, led her to study cookery.

After a course at Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in Texas, she found work at a number of restaurants, where she also found some crucial mentors who have continued to shape the cooking she does today. Perhaps the main mentor was Puerto Rican Egil Valentín, who instilled respect for traditional cuisine in her.

After fourteen years in the US, and two years after she returned to Italy, she began work at Glass Hostaria (Rome), where her beginnings were tough, but she was rewarded with a Michelin star in 2010. She then opened Romeo Chef & Baker in the city's Testaccio district, right next door to Giulietta Pizzeria.