Our Chef
JENNIFER SCISM
Co-Founder, Head Chef
Jennifer Scism has been a professional chef for over two decades. A graduate of The French Culinary Institute in Manhattan, she began her career cooking with top chefs and landed at Bouley, a New York Times 4 Star rated restaurant in New York’s Tribeca neighborhood in 1992. After Bouley, Jennifer went to Arcadia on the Upper East Side, during which time the restaurant earned a 3 Star rating from the New York Times. Later, she opened The Lobster Club, a second restaurant for Arcadia owner Anne Rosenzweig.
In 1999, Jennifer and respected chef Anita Lo, also a Bouley alumna, decided to open a restaurant together. In preparation, the two traveled the world for a year, visiting over 20 countries and sampling food from every walk of life. In 2000, Jennifer and Anita opened Annisa in New York’s Greenwich Village. Anita took the role of head chef while Jennifer ran the business operations as its general manager, sommelier, bookkeeper and all-around face of the restaurant.
The restaurant immediately became a neighborhood favorite and in 2005, Anita was asked to compete on the TV Food Network’s Iron Chef program. Anita, Jennifer and Annisa’s sous chef, Sawako Okochi, became the first team to win against Mario Batali, and were the show’s first all women team.
In 2008, Jennifer was honored with the Golden Fork Award from the Women Chefs and Restaurateurs organization recognizing excellence in the dining room.
After 10 years as the owner of one of New York’s top rated restaurants, Jennifer moved to the southern coast of Maine in 2010. It was here she met her future husband and business partner, David Koorits. The two renovated a house in Kittery, incorporating a commercial kitchen, and Jennifer opened Cape House Catering, serving weddings and events around the seacoast of Maine and New Hampshire for over two years. Deciding that catering was not where her heart was, Jennifer took her new love of backpacking and outdoor adventures and combined them with her years of creating delicious dishes to establish Good To-Go.
