Christine Hà
Christine Hà is an American chef, who is also blind.[1] She is the season three winner on the cooking show, MasterChef.[1] She also received the 2014 Helen Keller personal achievement award from the American Foundation for the Blind.[2] Hà landed two James Beard Award nominations.[3] She is considered one of the most well known Vietnamese chefs in Houston, TX, USA.[3]
Early life[change | change source]
Hà was born in Vietnam, in 1979.[4] She lost her vision at age twenty.[4] This was due to Neuromyelitis optica.[4] She had planned to be a writer.[4] Hà also got a Master's Degree in Writing at the University of Houston.[4]
Career[change | change source]
Hà won the third season of the cooking show, MasterChef.[1] She was the first ever blind chef on the MasterChef cooking show.[1] During her time at MasterChef, most contestants got canned crab. Hà, on the other hand, got a huge, live crab. Nonetheless, she still took the victory. Many of the judges complimented her on her extraordinary palate.[2]
Hà got the 2014 Helen Keller personal achievement award from the American Foundation for the Blind.[2] Her restaurant, the Blind Goat, was a semi-finalist for 2020 Best New Restaurant in America award from the James Beard Foundation.[3][5] In 2023, she and Tony J. Nguyen, got the Outstanding Chef nomination for their work at Xin Chào, also from the James Beard Foundation.[6][3] In addition, she travels the world to speak about experiences. She especially supports the visually impaired and Vietnamese youth. Hà has given multiple TED talks, as well. She launched the “Four Senses” cooking show dedicated to making accessible recipes.[4]
References[change | change source]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Kim, Kim Hogstrom (November 28, 2012). "Houston's 'blind cook' Christine Ha wins 'MasterChef'". Chron. Retrieved 2024-02-09.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "Christine Hà | Polus Center for Social & Economic Development". www.poluscenter.org. Retrieved 2024-02-09.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Ong, Bao. "MasterChef winner Christine Ha to part ways with her hit modern Vietnamese restaurant Xin Chao". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved 2024-02-09.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 Phuong, Le (2023-10-01). "Christine Ha, a Vietnamese-American master chef, tells an inspirational story for young people". THE VOICE OF VIETNAM. Retrieved 2024-02-09.
- ↑ "Christine Ha". txrestaurantshow.com. Retrieved 2024-03-23.
- ↑ "The 2023 James Beard Awards Semifinalists | James Beard Foundation". www.jamesbeard.org. Retrieved 2024-03-23.