Karen Akunowicz

Early life and education Akunowicz was born and raised in Kearny, New Jersey. She graduated from Kearny High School in 1996.

After graduating from the University of Massachusetts Amherst, she moved to Boston. While waiting tables, Akunowicz considered applying to graduate school for social work, but she decided to go to culinary school instead, attending the Cambridge School of Culinary Arts.

Career Akunowicz worked at L'Avian Blu in Modena, Italy and at Boston restaurants Via Matta and Oleana before becoming the executive chef and a partner at Joanne Chang's Myers+Chang. She was nominated for a James Beard Award in 2015, and she won the title of Best Chef: Northeast in 2018.

Akunowicz co-authored a cookbook published in 2017, Myers+Chang at Home: Recipes from the Beloved Boston Eatery.

In 2019, Akunowicz opened her own restaurant, Fox & the Knife, an Italian restaurant in South Boston. In 2019, it was named Best New Restaurant in America by Food and Wine Magazine and Eater International Fox & the Knife was also nominated for the James Beard Award for Best New Restaurant in America in 2019 and 2020.

In November 2021, Akunowicz opened her second restaurant, Bar Volpe, in South Boston. It focuses on Southern Italian cuisine.

In March 2024, Akunowicz opened an offshoot of Fox & the Knife, named Fox & Flight, in Boston's Logan International Airport.

Television appearances In 2014, Akunowicz competed on Beat Bobby Flay (season 1, episode 4), losing to Flay with Chicken & Waffles. In 2015, Akunowicz was a contestant on season 13 of Top Chef. In 2022 she competed in Season 3 of Tournament of Champions.

Personal life Akunowicz identifies as a queer femme. In 2014, she married her partner, LJ Johnson. In late July 2022, Akunowicz announced she was pregnant with her first child. Her daughter was born in September 2022.