Sherry E. Cardoso is an acclaimed fine dining chef best known for her tenure in some of New York’s most exacting kitchens, where discipline, attention to detail, and ingredient integrity shaped her dedication to her craft.

Born in New York and raised in Brazil, her earliest memories were framed by weekends spent on her uncle’s farm. She roamed sugarcane fields, picked fruit still warm from the sun, milked cows at sunrise, and helped harvest coffee beans laid out to dry, developing an early reverence for ingredients and an understanding of how food is grown, gathered, and transformed. Those early rituals inform her cooking philosophy, rooted in purity, respect for process, and emotional connection.

Coming from a lineage of self-taught, strong Brazilian women, Sherry found solace in the kitchen while helping her single mother, who worked tirelessly to provide for her three children. Standing on tiptoes to glimpse what her mother was cooking, she learned that a home-cooked meal is an act of love meant to be shared. It was there that Sherry realized her goal was not simply to cook, but to bring joy to others through her culinary creations. Reading Garlic and Sapphires by Ruth Reichl was a defining moment for Sherry, crystallizing the kind of chef she hoped to become, one whose food could carry emotion, narrative, and soul. Her professional culinary journey began in 2007 at Le Cirque Restaurant, where she trained under Chef Christophe Bellanca, a classically trained French chef who laid the foundation for her career in New York City. After leaving Le Cirque, she joined Chef Michael Psilakis at Anthos, the only Michelin-starred Greek restaurant outside of Greece. Rising from entremetier to sous chef in just seven months, she absorbed the values of simplicity, restraint, and seasonality while leading a kitchen staff of six at just 23 years old.

Sherry’s long-held dream came true in 2010 when she joined Chef Thomas Keller at Per Se, a chapter that remains the most formative of her career. Over three and a half years, she worked alongside legendary chefs including Paul Bocuse, Daniel Boulud, Daniel Humm, and others, internalizing a level of precision and quiet rigor that continue to guide her leadership and approach today. She later accepted a role at Brooklyn Fare, another three-Michelin-starred restaurant, where the small, high-performing kitchen further sharpened her commitment to excellence and ingredient clarity.

In 2018, Sherry took the helm at Café Cluny, where she expanded her operational expertise from cost management to building healthy kitchen cultures. In 2019 as a passion project, she joined the opening team at The Well, an ecosystem centered on nourishment for both body and soul, where she crafted menus emphasizing the healing properties of food.

By 2021, her reputation led her to Greg Baxtrom, who recruited her as Culinary Director for his Brooklyn-based restaurant group. In that role, she oversaw multiple openings, including Maison Yaki, Patti Ann’s, and Five Acres, and later reimagined Maison Yaki as Petit Patat. Then in 2024, Sherry joined the MSRG restaurant group as Executive Chef at Metropolis by Marcus, where she worked side-by-side with Chef Marcus Samuelsson, collaborating on menu development and helping lead the culinary direction and guest experience of the restaurant.

Beginning in February 2026, she will assume the role of Opening Executive Chef and Partner at Cynthia, a fine-dining concept in Manhattan’s West Village. The restaurant is devoted to redefining modern hospitality through sustainability, craftsmanship, and refined cuisine. Those who experience Sherry’s cooking often sense that, despite her years in fine dining, she still cooks with the warmth and intuition first learned in her mother’s kitchen.