Diana Tandia is the chef and owner of Berber Street Food. She is originally from Mauritania in Northwest Africa, where she was raised in a Berber/Fulani, Sarakhole family with Senegalese roots. At an early age, she watched her relatives prepare food from scratch, which made an impression on her. Diana moved to New York City in 2001 and studied at the French Culinary Institute in 2006. She continued her career at exclusive restaurants and hotels, including Daniel Boulud, Spice Market, Mandarin Oriental, and Gramercy Tavern. Diana has traveled the world to work with fine local chefs who have shaped her style of cuisine and influenced her to focus on fresh and wholesome food. In 2018, she launched her first restaurant Berber Street Food in the West Village of Manhattan, focused on “Afro-Fusion” dishes from Mauritania, Senegal, Morocco, Nigeria, Kenya, South Africa, and more–with a French and Asian flair. The chef has been featured in The New Yorker, The New York Times, the Michelin Guide, Time Out, Eater, and Plate magazine. Diana is chef de cuisine at Essensia restaurant at the Palms Hotel & Spa in South Beach, focusing on farm-to-table and sustainability. To that end, she is a 2024 Slow Food Snail of Approval honoree.