About Us
Abigail’s Kitchen is a private event space that offers hands-on cooking classes with menus that span the globe. Always fun, always informative and naturally delicious! In addition to cooking classes, we offer the original Dinners in the Dark in NYC, sensory feasts served to blindfolded guests. Our space is cozy and comfortable, perfect for smaller events of up to 24 guests. Betty is our hip and cool younger sister, located in the same building. We book larger events of up to 100 people in Betty.
About Chef Abigail Hitchcock
Chef Abby grew up on Long Island’s rural East End, known for its fishing and farming (fresh bay scallops, stripers, flounder, bluefish, farm-stands, and pick-your-own strawberries/pumpkins/apples). From her mother, she learned to love simple, fresh, local foods, and from her father, an amateur chef who enjoys preparing American and international feasts, a love of exploring foods from around the globe, and the science behind it.
But it wasn’t until she attended university in England, where she was placed in a “self-catering” flat (shop, cook, and feed yourself) that Abby found that food was her passion: shopping for it, cooking it, eating it, researching it. Abby loved exploring the greengrocer’s and butcher’s shops and preparing amazing repasts for her English flat mates—a New York brunch or an American Thanksgiving for 12—in her tiny kitchenette. After earning her Botany degree, she returned to the States and enrolled in Peter Kump’s New York Cooking School (now The Institute of Culinary Education).
With her Peter Kump diploma in hand, Abby went on to work at The Tea Box at Takashimaya in New York, Vong in London, and at the BBC’s Vegetarian Good Food Magazine. She has been a private chef, worked at Martha Stewart Living television, and run her own catering company. She finally settled down as part owner, then sole owner, of Abigail’s Kitchen (formerly Camaje) in Greenwich Village.
In 2022, having weathered the pandemic and 25 years on MacDougal Street, Abby moved Abigail’s Kitchen to the Lower East Side and opened an American restaurant, Betty which focuses on a homey menu including all-day breakfast. A certified sommelier, Abby also conducts wine tastings as part of her repertoire.
Abby hosts Dinners in the Dark—sensory feasts served to blindfolded diners—twice a week, the only such dinners in New York City. Featured in New York and national media, Dinners in the Dark feature Abby’s secret menus and other sensory “happenings” and have lured countless diners in search of an eating adventure.
Abby has been a contestant on Food Network’s Chopped! as well as a judge on Beat Bobby Flay numerous times.
WHAT PEOPLE SAY
Absolutely one of the BEST experiences of our lives! Dinner in the dark is an immersion in the tastes, sounds, smells and textures of an amazing meal. Every delightful mouthful left us excited with anticipation for the next. The atmosphere is joyful and energetic with impeccable service. We will definitely be back!
We attended Abigail’s Sushi Basics class and were blown away by the depth of her knowledge. We had a blast learning how to source ingredients and practicing making tasty sushi rolls from scratch ourselves. The atmosphere was super cool and laid back. We will be back for another cooking class soon!
Abigail and her team provided a fun, educational, and delicious meal & experience for me and 10 colleagues from my company. The best team-building evening we’ve ever had! Highly recommend Abigail’s for whatever unique culinary experience you want to create!
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