Top Food Journalists – The 2023 List

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When it comes to gaining coverage for your brand, it takes a number of components coming together successfully. One of the most significant factors in securing coverage is ensuring that you are pitching to the right food journalists. 

Building the perfect media list can be a challenge, though, and searching to find the right food reporters is a time-consuming and difficult process. Relevant journalists are essential in helping you to achieve coverage, helping you to generate increased brand awareness, and ensuring you reach more of your customers. 

If you’re searching for a comprehensive list of food journalists and their contact details, you can easily find them in Prowly’s Media Database. With the option to search by beat, location, outlet, or job position, finding the most relevant food media contacts for your story is a breeze.

Here’s a list of some of the most influential reporters selected using Prowly’s Media Database.


The best food journalists 


Katie Lee, Co-Host of The Kitchen on Food Network

Katie Lee is a professional chef, TV personality, author, and journalist. Studying journalism and food science at the Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, she began working at several restaurants before creating her own food website Olive and Peach. 

Since then, Katie has gone on to host several television shows and has also appeared as a guest on various cooking segments. She is now a Co-host on The Kitchen on the Food Network and covers a wide range of topics and recipes through her popular social media channels. 

Katie Lee - Top food journalists
Source: Twitter


Tim Carman, Food Reporter at The Washington Post

Tim has been the food reporter at The Washington Post since 2010, previously working as a food editor for the Washington City Paper. Currently writing about a wide range of topics, Tim focuses on national food issues and also covers restaurants across the city. 

Tim has written for a number of different publications and has been a three-time nominee for a James Beard Award, winning the 2011 edition for his food-related columns in The Washington Post. James can often be found talking about his favorite foods on his popular Twitter account. 

Tim Carman - Top food journalists
Source: Twitter


Frank Bruni, Columnist at The New York Times

Frank Bruni has been one of the leading food reporters at the New York Times for over two decades. Although he is famed for his tenure as the restaurant critic for the outlet, he has also covered a wide range of industries and topics while at the paper. 

In addition to his work at the New York Times, Frank has also published three bestselling books, including Born Round, a memoir on his family’s love of food, and his own struggles with eating disorders. 

Frank Bruni - Top food journalists
Source: Twitter


Serena Maria Daniels, Co-Founder at Tostada Magazine

Serena is an award-winning food journalist and is the found and editor of Tostada Magazine, a popular digital outlet covering food-based stories about and written by people of color or from immigrant backgrounds. 

Serena’s work has helped to significantly influence how the modern media approaches food reporting, and her work has appeared in various titles, including Forbes, NPR, and Thrillist. She typically covers restaurant developers and trends within Detroit. 

Serena Maria Daniels - Top food journalists
Source: Twitter


Sam Fromartz, Editor-in-Chief at Food Environment Reporting Net

Sam is a veteran food reporter, covering a wide range of food industry topics, including environmental impact and farming. He co-founded Food Environment Reporting Net (FERN) in 2011, where he remains Editor-in-Chief. 

Sam is interested in all topics to do with food, agriculture, and environmental health, and his career began in the mid-1980s when he started working for Reuters. Since then, he has written for Fortune, Business Week, The New York Times, The Washington Post, and The Nation.

Sam Fromartz - Top food journalists
Source: Twitter


Heather Haddon, Restaurants Reporter at The Wall Street Journal

Heather is the resident food and restaurant reporter for The Wall Street Journal. She previously covered food retail in Chicago and has also previously written about politics and local affairs in New Jersey. 

She nowadays focuses on the major restaurant news in the region, covering everything from supermarket and consumer trends to the impact that online grocery has had in recent years. 

Heather Haddon - Top food journalists
Source: Twitter


Jonathan Kauffman, Freelance

Jonathan is one of the most respected food journalists in the industry, and his work has appeared in some of the leading titles, including The Wall Street Journal, San Francisco Chronicle, and Eating Well Magazine. 

He covers a varied intersection of the food industry and regularly covers important topics such as global cuisines, food technology, and agriculture. He is the author of several books and has also won several awards from the James Beard Foundation, Association of Food Journalism, and the International Association of Culinary Professionals. 

Jonathan Kauffman - Top food journalists
Source: Twitter


Tom Philpott, Food and Ag Correspondent at Mother Jones

Tom is the food and agricultural reporter for Mother Jones, and he regularly covers topics around the food system, including the politics, history, and science behind it. He runs the Food for Thought blog and regularly contributes to the printed Mother Jones magazine too. 

His career began in the restaurant industry, working as a busboy, but he soon moved into journalism, writing restaurant reviews for The Austin Chronicle throughout the 1990s. He contributes articles to other leading titles, such as The New York Times, and is also a bestselling author and award-winning journalist. 

Tom Philpott - Top food journalists
Source: Twitter


Add even more reporters to your food media list

Prowly’s Media Database contains over one million journalists, and you can filter your results by industry, location, job position, and news outlet, ensuring you can always find the perfect media contacts for your story. 

You can also enjoy full search access to the database 7 days for free, allowing you to try Prowly risk-free and see if it’s a good fit for your needs.

Editor’s Note: The list was updated for accuracy in November 2021.