V2 Beta · Christiansted, St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands
Luke Wu
Culinary Definer & Originator of Mitochondrial Cuisine
The standing
Chef · Concept Builder · Founder, Crucian Farms
In crypto since 2011 — fifteen years running blockchain and Web3 systems, from open-outcry bitcoin markets to on-chain provenance and payments in production today; an AI-native operator for three years, building and maintaining the agent systems, automation and design tooling behind daily operations. Executive chef, concept builder, commercial grower. Twenty-three years across New York, Hong Kong and Vancouver; based in Christiansted, St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands. Runs both sides of the pass — MICHELIN-starred brigades first, then the farms that supplied them.
Concept & culinary theory. Originator of Mitochondrial Cuisine, a culinary framework grounded in the published longevity research of Martin Picard, Valter Longo and many dozen other researchers — culinary theory, never medical advice. Author of CINDER, a live-fire, farm-fed flagship built to earn the industry’s highest distinctions.
MICHELIN-starred kitchen leadership. Formed under 13 mentor chefs whose individual records total 51 MICHELIN stars, 29 Guide recommendations and 7 rooms on a World’s 50 Best list; led in 2 MICHELIN-distinguished rooms as chef and member of the brigade, cooked full-time in 11. Chef de Cuisine at Yardbird, the year it earned its first MICHELIN star. Culinary Creative Manager for the Frantzén Group — ran their New Nordic program day-to-day at Frantzén’s Kitchen, tested dishes with Executive Chef Jim Löfdahl, the first employee hire by Björn Frantzén — today the only chef in the world holding three MICHELIN three-star restaurants at once. Executive Sous-Chef, Shangri-La Vancouver: directed whole-building Hotel & Restaurant F&B through a leadership gap spanning MICHELIN inspection months — all from a single kitchen, the former MARKET by Jean-Georges’ engine room. Carlino held its 2023 MICHELIN Recommended designation. Tournant at Perry St (Jean-Georges Vongerichten), in the Richard Meier building. Opening teams: Shang (Susur Lee), Lincoln Ristorante (Jonathan Benno), Ai Fiori (Michael White), and Romera New York. Stagiaire at Per Se and Jean Georges New York.
Agriculture & agtech. Chef, Farmer and Sales Manager at Farm.One, New York; co-founder & CTO of Farmacy, Hong Kong — together supplying 36 MICHELIN-starred rooms, 49 Guide-listed rooms in all, holding 61 MICHELIN stars. Closed the accounts chef to chef, among them L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon on two continents, Atera, Aska, Bo Innovation, Caprice, Chef’s Table at Brooklyn Fare, Côte, Daniel, Eleven Madison Park and Jungsik. Founder of Crucian Farms, St. Croix — licensed and USDA-registered, ran 100% off-grid.
Operations & systems. Founder-level P&L oversight across four companies — food cost, labour, inventory, purchasing. The agent systems, automation and design tooling behind daily operations are his own build, maintained day to day alongside the kitchens and the farms.
Trilingual: English, French and Mandarin fluency form the ultimate business trifecta, combining the world’s primary financial language (English), Europe’s elite diplomatic tongue (French), and Asia’s dominant supply chain powerhouse (Mandarin) — English, native; professional and editorial command, EF SET Certified C2 Proficient · French, Fluent, International Baccalaureate Organization — IB Diploma in French A: Language and Literature · Mandarin Chinese, Conversational, Traditional Characters · Spanish, Beginner.
Open to immediate global relocation.
Summary
How the cooking is thought about.
Executive chef, concept builder, commercial grower. Twenty-three years across New York, Hong Kong and Vancouver; based in Christiansted, St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands. Runs both sides of the pass — MICHELIN-starred brigades first, then the farms that supplied them.
Originator of Mitochondrial Cuisine — a culinary framework grounded in the published longevity research of Martin Picard, Valter Longo and many dozen other researchers. Culinary theory, never medical advice. Author of CINDER, a live-fire, farm-fed flagship built to earn the industry’s highest distinctions.
The kitchens. Formed under thirteen mentor chefs whose individual records total 51 MICHELIN stars, 29 Guide recommendations and 7 rooms on a World’s 50 Best list; led in 2 MICHELIN-distinguished rooms as chef and member of the brigade, cooked full-time in 11. Chef de Cuisine at Yardbird, in the year it earned its first MICHELIN star. Culinary Creative Manager for the Frantzén Group — ran their New Nordic program day-to-day at Frantzén’s Kitchen, tested dishes with Executive Chef Jim Löfdahl, the first employee Björn Frantzén ever hired, and shared recipes across the group as it planned FZN Dubai — three MICHELIN stars within months of opening, making Björn Frantzén the only chef in the world today holding three MICHELIN three-star restaurants at once. Executive Sous-Chef, Shangri-La Vancouver: directed whole-building F&B through a leadership gap spanning MICHELIN inspection months — breakfast, lunch, dinner, banquets, in-room dining, weddings, private tastings — all from a single kitchen, the former MARKET by Jean-Georges’ engine room. Carlino held its 2023 MICHELIN Recommended designation. Tournant at Perry St (Jean-Georges Vongerichten), in the Richard Meier building. Opening teams: Shang (Susur Lee), Lincoln Ristorante (Jonathan Benno), Ai Fiori (Michael White), and Romera New York. Stagiaire at Per Se and Jean Georges New York.
The farms. Chef, Farmer and Sales Manager at Farm.One in New York; co-founder & CTO of Farmacy in Hong Kong — together supplying 36 MICHELIN-starred rooms, 49 Guide-listed rooms in all, holding 61 MICHELIN stars between them. Closed the accounts chef to chef, among them L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon on two continents, Atera, Aska, Bo Innovation, Caprice, Chef’s Table at Brooklyn Fare, Côte, Daniel, Eleven Madison Park and Jungsik. Today, Crucian Farms, St. Croix — licensed and USDA-registered, ran 100% off-grid.
The operation. Founder-level P&L oversight across four companies — food cost, labour, inventory, purchasing. An AI-native operator for three years and counting: building and maintaining the agent systems, automation and design tooling behind daily operations.
Languages. English, EF SET certified, French (International Baccalaureate Organization — IB Diploma in French A: Language and Literature), conversational Mandarin Chinese (traditional characters, Lions Gate Chinese School), beginner Spanish. Open to immediate global relocation.
The archive · people
The chefs, and the brigades.
The mentors, the grand mentors, and the cooks either side of him on the line.
The rooms
The line, in order.
2003 · North Vancouver, Canada (Lonsdale)
Moodyville's
Dishwasher
2004 · North Vancouver, Canada (Lonsdale)
Browns Restaurant Group
Dishwasher → Prep → Line Cook
2004–06 · West Vancouver, Canada (Ambleside)
Carmelo's Ristorante
Dishwasher → Line Cook → Pizza Cook
2006–07 · North Vancouver, Canada (Grouse Mountain)
The Observatory
Line Cook
2007–08 · New York, USA (West Village · 176 Perry Street)
Perry St
Tournant
The rooms · 2
And the ones after that.
2008–10 · New York, USA (Lower East Side · Thompson LES)
Shang
Jr. Sous-Chef
2009–10 · New York, USA (Greenwich Village · 381–383 Bleecker Street)
Ralph Lauren RRL
Sales Professional — Seasonal Part-Time Fashion Consultant, Cashier
2010 · New York, USA (Upper West Side · Lincoln Center)
Lincoln Ristorante
Chef de Partie
2011–12 · New York, USA (NoMad · Setai Fifth Avenue, renamed Langham Place in 2013)
Ai Fiori
Chef de Partie
2011 · New York, USA (Meatpacking District · Dream Downtown)
Romera New York
Sous-Chef
The rooms · 3
And the ones after that.
2013–14 · New York, USA (Lower East Side · 79 Clinton Street)
Yunnan Kitchen
Wok Chef
2014–15 · New York, USA (Battery Park City · Hudson Eats, Brookfield Place)
Northern Tiger
Executive Sous-Chef
2015 · New York, USA (Clinton Hill · 376 Classon Avenue)
Speedy Romeo
Line Cook (Relief)
2012–14 · New York, USA (Brooklyn Navy Yard · Long Island City Rooftop)
Brooklyn Grange
Urban Farmer, Hot Sauce CPG Lead
2015 · New York, USA (Bedford-Stuyvesant · 372 Lafayette Avenue)
The Market
Chef de Cuisine
The rooms · 4
And the ones after that.
2013–17 · New York, USA (Hell's Kitchen · Silver Towers, 620 West 42nd Street)
Manhattan Agriculture
Founder, Chef Consultant
2012–13 · New York, USA (Upper East Side · 740 Park Avenue)
740 Park Avenue
Chef, Private Family Residence
2016–18 · New York, USA (Battery Park City · Institute of Culinary Education, Brookfield Place)
Farm.One
Sales Manager, Chef & Farmer
2018–19 · Hong Kong SAR, China (Pok Fu Lam · Cyberport)
Farmacy HK
Co-Founder, Chief Technology Officer & Sales Manager
2018–20 · Hong Kong SAR, China (Central · PMQ)
Sake Central
Executive Sous-Chef
The rooms · 5
And the ones after that.
2021 · Hong Kong SAR, China (Sheung Wan · Winsome House)
Yardbird
Chef de Cuisine
2021–22 · Hong Kong SAR, China (Sheung Wan · 11 Upper Station Street)
Frantzén's Kitchen
Culinary Creative Manager
2022 · Hong Kong SAR, China (Sheung Wan)
Embla
R&D · Cold Bar · Hot Kitchen · Chef's Counter Service
2022–23 · Vancouver, Canada (Downtown · Shangri-La, now Hyatt Downtown Alberni)
Carlino & POI
Executive Sous-Chef — acting head of kitchen
2024 · Los Angeles, CA, USA
Pasta|Bar
Guest Chef Residency
The rooms · 6
And the ones after that.
2024–present · Christiansted, St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands, USA (Estate Strawberry)
Crucian Farms
Founder, Chief Artificial Intelligence Officer (CAIO)
2026–present · Christiansted, St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands, USA
Mitochondrial Cuisine
Founder & Chief Culinary Officer (CCO)
The archive · food
What left the pass.
Plates as they were sent, photographed in service rather than in a studio.
The archive · farms
Where the produce came from.
The growers, the beds and the pavilions behind the menus.
The archive · rooms
The rooms themselves.
The kitchens and dining rooms he stood in.
The archive · systems
Drawn, then built.
Kitchen systems, station design and the documents that ran them.
On paper
Certified, in writing.
- Early to three technology shifts in food: indoor vertical farming before it had a market; digital payments — the first operation on record to sell locally grown produce for Bitcoin, documented in the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times and the Netflix film Banking on Bitcoin; and AI, working natively with frontier tooling for three years. The pattern is the point: I read a technology early, build with it, and put it to work in a kitchen. That same instinct now runs on-chain: an immutable supply chain where every harvest, transfer and sale is written to a ledger, producing a live logistical dataset that drives dynamic inventory and supply management through web3.
- Cyberport Incubation Programme (Intake 24) — Acceptance, Farmacy HK Limited, May 2018. $330,000 HKD technology seed fund awarded by Hong Kong Cyberport Management Company Limited.
- K-Farm, Hong Kong — the 20,000 sq ft smart urban farm on Victoria Harbour, winner of AIA Hong Kong awards in both Sustainability and Urban Design. Farmacy was a founding partner alongside Rough C Limited and Avoid Obvious Architects; I counselled the growing science. Architecture by Vicky Chan, AIA.
- Author of CINDER (cindercuisine.com) — a live-fire, farm-fed flagship engineered for the full MICHELIN set: three Stars and a Green Star for the restaurant, and three Keys for the property that houses it. Concept, 66-course program, financial model and site built end to end.
- Originator of Mitochondrial Cuisine (mitochondrialcuisine.com) — grounded in the published mitochondrial and longevity science of Martin Picard and Valter Longo, and popularised by Rhonda Patrick, Peter Attia and William Li.
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- A'Design Award — Silver, Interior Space & Exhibition Design. "The Artist House — Bar with Aqua Farm," design #65355, awarded 15 April 2018, Milan. Top 5 percentile, judged by an international jury of design professionals and academics.
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- Food-safety: NYC Dept. of Health Food Protection certificate; BC FOODSAFE Level 2 (HACCP experience).
- Stagiaire and guest work: Per Se (Thomas Keller Group); James Beard House, cooking Susur Lee events; created a dish for Chef Kristen Kish; mentorship session with Chef Daniel Boulud.
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- International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO) — IB Course Certificate in French A: Language and Literature. French immersion, kindergarten through grade 12 (Cleveland Elementary / Handsworth Secondary, 1990–2003).
- EF SET Certificate — C2 Proficient (71/100) · Reading C2 · Listening C2 · Writing C2 · Speaking B2 · cert.efset.org/Xc8rDD · Awarded 06 Aug 2026
On the record
In someone else's words.
This letter is my personal recommendation for Luke Wu. He has been a valuable cook. I found him to be consistently pleasant, tackling all tasks given to him with a smile. As a hard worker and a thinker, Luke demonstrated technical and organizational skills that will translate well into his future culinary career. During his time here, he proved himself to be a team player and an asset to the restaurant, and I am happy to recommend him for employment in any organization.
Susur Lee · Executive Chef, SHANG · New York
On the record, continued
In someone else's words.
Luke Wu has been an employee at SHANG since 11/14/2008. His performance as a Line Cook has been exemplary and he has performed with professionalism and talent. His attendance and attitude is consistent and reliable. Starting from August 3rd 2009, Luke Wu will be receiving a salary raise which will put his annual salary to $32,000.
Doron Wong · Chef de Cuisine, SHANG · Thompson LES, New York
On the record, continued
In someone else's words.
I am writing this letter of recommendation to certify that Luke Wu worked under my orders as a chef and definer of the culinary concept Neurogastronomy at Romera New York. At all times Luke maintained an exemplary attitude about his work and he stood out for his technical skills and commitment to the culinary concept that was being developed. In terms of personal traits, Luke's sympathy and solidarity with his team and his fulfillment of work schedule were impeccable. In my personal and professional opinion, Luke has the sufficient skills as a cook to carry out a job in fine dining and it is with this letter that I recommend him without any hesitation.
Dr. Miguel Sánchez Romera · Neurologist and Chef, Romera New York · MICHELIN ★ at L'Esguard, Sant Andreu de Llavaneres, Barcelona
On the record, continued
In someone else's words.
It's my absolute pleasure to recommend Luke for any position with Farmacy HK Limited. Luke and I founded ManhattanAgriculture as an artist collective and consulting agency in late 2011. He established an online presence for us and networked with several key clients during the last 6 and a half years. I thoroughly enjoyed my time working with Luke, and came to know him as a truly valuable asset to absolutely any team. He organized a group of likeminded artists and helped forward the urban agriculture movement in New York. Luke is honest, dependable, and incredibly hard-working. Beyond that, he is an impressive speaker who is always inspiring others. His knowledge of culinary arts and expertise in smart farming was a huge advantage to our entire team. Luke put this skillset to work in order to create a holistically minded culinary lifestyle. Along with his undeniable talent, Luke has always been an absolute joy to work with. He is a true team player, and always manages to foster positive discussions and brings the best out of others. Without a doubt, I confidently recommend Luke to join your team at Farmacy HK. As a dedicated and knowledgeable partner and an all-around great person, I know that he will be a valuable addition to your organization.
Brian D. Phillips · Managing Partner, ManhattanAgriculture.com · New York
On the record, continued
In someone else's words.
Luke is a fermentational wizard; men like him are born once every eight generations. It was an honor to watch the magic of his craft at the Bitcoin Center, 100 feet from the New York Stock Exchange.
Nick Spanos · Bitcoin pioneer · Netflix's Banking on Bitcoin · founder, Bitcoin Center NYC
On the record, continued
In someone else's words.
Luke's work ethic and food based knowledge is second to none. He has an intimate understanding of how Chef's think and what they need. He thrives in outbound, account management, and creative culinary settings. He sets the tone for anyone who works with or under him. He is incredibly generous with his time and knowledge and energizes the entire company through sheer force of will. It was an absolute pleasure working with him and I will miss his guidance, tutelage, and tenacity. Anyone operating a restaurant, food service, or food supplying company should seriously consider him as a candidate and potential invaluable addition to their team.
Wilson Gibbons · Farm.One, New York — direct report to Luke Wu
On the record, continued
In someone else's words.
He is one of the rare administrators on Discord who openly shares his life and market decisions, always ready to assist those in need. He is precise, direct, and a knowledgeable expert in his field. I am grateful to be part of a community with such an inspiring and modest individual.
Semyon Bayramov · Worked with Luke on the same team
On the record, continued
In someone else's words.
Working with Luke has given us the ability to customize orders and source varieties not found anywhere else. Service is extremely flexible, saving us time and money. Farm.One product quality has been exceptional.
Aaron Allen · Sous-Chef, Daniel (MICHELIN ★★)
On the record, continued
In someone else's words.
Collaborating with Farm.One has been an exciting process. It has opened up many new possibilities for us. The ability to grow in-house fuels our creative process.
Ronny Emborg · Executive Chef, Atera (MICHELIN ★★)
On the record, continued
In someone else's words.
You guys are vital to one of the most popular dishes on our menu. I enjoy working with Farm.One very much
Ashley Rath · Executive Sous-Chef, The Grill at The Seagram Building
On the record, continued
In someone else's words.
I have never had better service from a business. Attention to detail on every plant is 100%; the flavors are amazing and fresh. The customer service is always on point with the knowledge of everything they deliver.
Matthew Zita · Chef de Cuisine, Double Zero
On the record, continued
In someone else's words.
Farm.One product quality is among the best in the industry. Their responsive service has allowed us to adapt our menu every week. I approached Farm.One because I heard about them from Chefs I've worked with previously. One thing I really liked was the wide variety of rare herbs, edible flowers and microgreens. I would recommend Farm.One to any Chef and/or restauranteur in the New York City area.
Nicolas Abello · Executive Chef, L'Appart (MICHELIN ★)
On the record, continued
In someone else's words.
Farm.One's innovative technology has provided us with top quality products and service. It allows Jungsik the opportunity to explore various different garnishing elements off season or not readily available. Through our collaboration, we have been able to elevate our dishes both in aesthetics and flavor profile. Luke supplies us with information about every product's growth and is very accommodating to our high standards and demands. Farm.One has given our restaurant many outlets to explore.
Hoyoung Kim · Executive Chef, Jungsik NYC (MICHELIN ★★)
In print
Written up elsewhere.
Salon · 31 January 2024
Cleanse and restore your body with these winter herbs
<p>“But for those who want to take their cleansing a step further, herbs are especially helpful.” — by Luke Wu</p>
Avoid Obvious Architects · 2021
K-Farm: Smart Urban Farming on the Kennedy Town waterfront
<p>Hydroponics, aquaponics and organic farming combined on Hong Kong's harbourfront — with Farmacy among the project's farmers.</p>
MICHELIN Guide · 14 November 2018
Herbs and Flowers Flourish Underground at Farm.One in NYC
Adjacent to two-MICHELIN-star Atera, Farm.One distributes lesser-known microgreens and herbs to chefs throughout the boroughs.
Avoid Obvious Architects · 2018
The Artist House with Aqua Farm — the first farm-to-glass concept in Hong Kong
<p>The in-house aqua farm provides most of the ingredients for the food and drinks — 90% less water, 60% less fertilizer, 11× the yield on 80% less land.</p>
A' Design Award & Competition · 2017–18
The Artist House Bar with Aqua Farm — Winner, Interior Space and Exhibition Design
<p>Team members (15): Vicky Chan, Woohyun Cho, Emily Manasc, Andrew Kwong, Benjamin Cox, Olivier Gilson, Jonathan Fok, Sanford Liu, Raymond Mak, Luke Wu, Lucia Sohn, Woody Chen, Nicholas Cheng, Calvin Nip and Veronica Huang.</p>
Institute of Culinary Education · 27 January 2017
Freshen Up: FiDi Fast Food Finds with Hydroponic Farm Herbs
Farm.One team feature by founder Rob Laing, crediting "Luke Wu's Ghost Pepper Hot Sauce" among the garden ingredients.
Institute of Culinary Education · 16 December 2016
Winter Herbs for Kitchen Survival: How to Cleanse Your Body & Nourish Guests
Bylined feature by Luke Wu on herbal medicine in the professional kitchen — written from the ICE hydroponic garden, drawing on European herbalism, traditional Chinese medicine, Ayurveda and American eclectic medicine.
Netflix · 2016 · Documentary
Banking on Bitcoin
<p>Featured in the feature-length documentary charting bitcoin's early New York community and the Bitcoin Center trading floor.</p>
Apple TV · 2016 · Documentary
Banking on Bitcoin
<p>The same documentary, streaming on Apple TV — a record of the downtown Manhattan cryptocurrency scene.</p>
Observer · September 2015
Aquaponics: Inside Edenworks' Williamsburg rooftop farm
Luke Wu named as chef at The Market, on the early New York indoor-farming scene.
99Bitcoins · August 2015
Farmers Markets and Bitcoin: What's Cooking in the Crypto Kitchen
<p>“We are building an agricultural network for the Information Age by adopting ecologically conscious technologies and product cycles.” — Manhattan Agriculture</p>
The Awl · February 2014
Dogecoin Is Real — And They Party With Dogs
<p>The first Dogeparty at the Bitcoin Center in downtown Manhattan — a night of cryptocurrency, community and dogs.</p>
International Business Times · January 2014
New York's Bitcoin Center: Where Cryptocurrency Elite And Newbies Gather
<p>Luke Wu, the owner of the Butterfly Labs ASIC bitcoin miner up at auction, stands by Spanos feeding him information about the device.</p>
Vogue · March 2009
I Love the Nightlife — photographed by Mario Testino, shot in the Shang kitchen at Thompson LES
Shot on location in the Shang kitchen at the Thompson LES, New York — Luke Wu on the line during the editorial shoot.
Crunchbase · Profile
Luke Wu — Farmer & Chef, Farm.One
<p>Before it's news, it's in Crunchbase.</p>
Office Hours · Profile
Luke Wu — expert advisor
<p>Everyone's an expert, they just might not know it yet.</p>
The craft
What the hands do.
Training
Where it was learned.
Languages — Trilingual: English, French and Mandarin fluency, the three tongues of the business world: English, its financial language; French, Europe’s diplomatic one; Mandarin, Asia’s supply-chain power. English, native, with professional and editorial command, EF SET Certified C2 Proficient · French, fluent, International Baccalaureate Diploma in French A: Language and Literature · Mandarin Chinese, conversational, traditional characters · Spanish, beginner, 1985-Present
Lions Gate Chinese School, Vancouver, BC — Mandarin Chinese Certificate: Adult Conversational, Traditional Characters, 1993-2003
ArborVitae School of Traditional Herbalism — Year One, 2013-2014
Harvard University (edX) — Science & Cooking: From Haute Cuisine to Soft Matter Science, Audited, 2011-12
Vancouver Community College — Culinary Arts Certificate, 2006-2007
Capilano University — Undergraduate, Attended 2004 - 06
Handsworth Secondary/Cleveland Elementary — French Immersion, International Baccalaureate Programme, French Languages Diploma, 1990-2003
The Royal Conservatory of Music — Advanced Piano Pedagogy, Year Ten, 1990-2000
V2 Beta · the shipped site remains V1 Pro