Queer Women We Love, Red Hot Entrepreneurs, Wonder Women

Workin’ It (Part 2) 2009

Carleen Haughton
Chef/Owner, Bristen’s Eatery

Carleen Haughton, owner of Bristen’s Eatery in Crown Heights, Brooklyn was born in Kingston, Jamaica and migrated to the United States in 1984. She graduated from Hofstra University with a BS in Economics and Finance, and worked on Wall Street for 18 years. After 9/11, Haughton “decided it was important to do what I was passionate about.” In 2007, she graduated from The Institute of Culinary Education and opened Bristen’s Eatery. Haughton is committed to keeping prices affordable, while also using the best ingredients from local farmers and other local businesses. The menu includes hearty dishes such as omelettes, French toast, pancakes, generously stuffed paninis and burgers. Bristen’s is also dedicated to the community and working with youth. Her goal is to maintain a safe place for people to exchange information, have community meetings, play dates or just chat.

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Yoanne Magris
Chef/Owner, Yo In Yo Out

A native of France, Yoanne Magris’ love for food developed at an early age as she watched her grandmother Eftalia dish out the savoir-faire of French and Mediterranean cuisines. Her early lessons obviously paid off. She has gone on to cater for celebrities and prominent political figures and opened her own restaurant, Yo In Yo Out. A piece of downtown located in New York’s East Spanish Harlem, the restaurant has a family-friendly feel with spacious and comfortable living room areas, as well as an open kitchen. Chef Yo, as Magris likes to be called, is dedicated to using the freshest ingredients and personally goes to the market daily. Her savory baked goods and homemade tarts are a big hit in the neighborhood. And if you can’t get to Spanish Harlem, Chef Yo takes her recipes to private events all around the world. The keys to her success, she says, are “great food, great atmosphere, friendly staff, and a little bit of French touch on the top.”