Drawing on her family's rich barbacoa tradition, Cristina Martínez has become a Philadelphia food star -- and a voice for undocumented immigrants.

At Istanbul's Çiya, "food anthropologist" Musa Dagdeviren meticulously re-creates regional Turkish dishes in a bid to keep them from going extinct.

Frustrated by the dearth of authentic Thai cuisine, Bo Songvisava revives bold, complex local flavors in her sustainable Bangkok restaurant.

After years as the creative director of El Bulli, innovator Albert Adrià now presides over an "amusement park" of genre-bending Barcelona eateries.

At New York hot spot Milk Bar, Christina Tosi channels her love of junk food into irresistible treats like cereal-milk ice cream and "crack pie."

Inspired by the orchards and farms of his native Sicily, Corrado Assenza turns out rich gelatos, almond granitas, crispy cannoli and other delicacies.

When a twist of fate left Jordi Roca in charge of pastry at his brothers' famous restaurant, he stunned everyone with his wildly inventive creations.

After rocketing to fame with his avant-garde desserts, Will Goldfarb abruptly left New York for a new start in Bali, land of fresh cocoa and vanilla.

In South Korea, Buddhist nun Jeong Kwan approaches cooking as a spiritual practice. But her meals have left some of the world's best chefs in awe.

At Moscow's White Rabbit, chef Vladimir Mukhin introduces diners to the true spirit of Russian cuisine by giving traditional dishes a modern twist.

Driven by an obsession with dough, award-winning LA chef Nancy Silverton built a bread-making empire before reinventing herself as a mozzarella maven.

A decades-long romance with Japan led New York chef Ivan Orkin to an unlikely new life as a ramen star -- and a master of umami.

After a stormy youth in the streets of Berlin, chef Tim Raue upended the city's food scene and earned two Michelin stars with provocative new flavors.

Using little-known ingredients from across Peru, chef Virgilio Martínez creates gorgeous, edible ecosystems in his innovative menu at Central.

Superstar American chef Grant Achatz wants to wow diners with mystery, emotion and magic just as much as he does with flavor and beauty.

Brazilian chef and adventurer Alex Atala relies on his wild spirit and love for the Amazon to show diners how an open mind pays off in deliciousness.

French-born Dominique Crenn's love for life, family and personal connection helped her become the first two-Michelin star chef in America.

Chef Enrique Olvera transforms Mexico's most savory street foods and traditional ingredients into award-winning dishes at his Mexico City restaurant.

Self-taught Slovenian chef Ana Roš uses ingredients from her remote surroundings to create inspired and surprising dishes.

With his passion for reimagining what traditional Indian food can be, celebrity chef Gaggan Anand created the best restaurant in all of Asia.

By blending Italian tradition and artful modernity, chef Massimo Bottura's Osteria Francescana has been ranked the third best restaurant in the world.

Celebrated chef, dedicated farmer and food industry revolutionary Dan Barber is leading a fight to change the way we think about, and grow, our food.

From isolated Patagonian islands to French Michelin three-star restaurants, chef Francis Mallmann celebrates his wild, open-fire cooking style.

In her award-winning Los Angeles restaurant N/Naka, Niki Nakayama brings equal parts creativity, passion and expertise to her kaiseki cuisine.

New Zealand chef Ben Shewry's strong connection with nature and dedication to finding new tastes have made his Australian restaurant Attica world famous.

Far from any city, far from most fresh ingredients, chef Magnus Nilsson has created one of the world’s great restaurants in frozen Järpen, Sweden.