Maura Kilpatrick, Co-Owner and Pastry Chef, Sofra

Maura Kilpatrick first picked up a spatula as a teenager, and never let go. She pursued her zeal for cooking by enrolling at the California Culinary Academy and accepting jobs in the kitchens of Boston’s top chefs, including Lydia Shire, Moncef Medeb, Rene Michelena, and Ana Sortun.

In 1999, Maura opened two bakeries, High-Rise Bread Company and High-Rise Pie Company, where some of her original recipes are still used today. She and Sortun reunited in 2001 to develop the concept for Oleana, and Kilpatrick fell in love with the flavors and spices of the Mediterranean and the Middle East, for which she is now known. In 2008, the duo opened Sofra, a bakery and café inspired by the cuisines of Turkey, Lebanon, and Greece.

As executive pastry chef and co-owner, Maura’s use of ingredients, like orange blossoms, rose petals, kaymek, and kadayifi, have earned her pastries national recognition. Maura was named “Boston’s Best Pastry Chef” by Boston Magazine and won a StarChefs Rising Stars award in 2008. Her first cookbook, Soframiz, was released in 2015. Maura was a nominee for the 2015, 2016, and 2017 James Beard Award for Outstanding Pastry Chef and in 2018, 2019, and 2020 for Outstanding Baker.