Columbia Alum Brings Food, Culture, and Storytelling Together at ‘Bon Appétit’

Photography by Travis Rainey, Bon Appétit.

As director of culture at “Bon Appétit,” ��Ƶ alum Joseph Hernandez ’09 digs into what readers love beyond recipes.

For Joseph Hernandez ’09, food journalism is about much more than what’s on the plate. As director of culture at “Bon Appétit,” he explores the connections between food, travel, politics, entertainment, and the people and communities that shape our world.

At “Bon Appétit,” an industry leader in print and digital food media, the ��Ƶ Journalism alum leads noncooking editorial content across print, digital, video, and social media for “Bon Appétit.” He develops stories that look at everything from American barbecue traditions to the ways food brings communities together to the places where foodies travel to the activities cooks enjoy outside the kitchen.

“Our audience, they're avid cooks, but they also plan their travels and their lives around food and restaurants and all the culture in between,” Hernandez says.

His career combines his lifelong curiosity about art and culture with the storytelling skills and professional experiences he gained while going to Columbia.

Chicago: The Ultimate Classroom

Hernandez discovered his passion for journalism as a teenager, writing for his high school newspaper and literary magazine. At Columbia, he specialized in magazine journalism, sharpening his feature writing and editing skills. During his time at Columbia, he served as co-editor-in-chief of “Echo,” gaining hands-on experience at Columbia’s student magazine.

Hernandez credits mentors at Columbia, including then-professor and current career advisor Jennifer Halperin with supporting and advising him throughout college and beyond. His Columbia mentors encouraged his professional growth, and Halperin later inspired him to consider teaching, he says.

Columbia also gave Hernandez the freedom to pursue interests outside journalism, including anthropology, fashion marketing, fiction writing, and film.

“All of those things laddered up into a knowledge and appreciation of all of these aspects of art and culture,” he says, adding that he still draws on those subjects in his daily work.

Hernandez also took full advantage of Chicago’s creative community. He completed internships nearly every semester, including positions with Chicago’s LGBTQ film festival and luxury lifestyle media company Modern Luxury.

Through those experiences, he built professional connections and secured freelance assignments covering Chicago’s arts and culture scene.

“Chicago as a classroom is not to be underestimated,” he says.

Building a Career in Food and Lifestyle Journalism

After graduating, Hernandez faced a challenging job market. He pursued freelance assignments, worked in hospitality, and developed expertise in wine and food journalism to distinguish himself in a competitive industry.

His persistence paid off when he landed an editorial position at “Wine Enthusiast.” He later returned to Chicago as a features reporter at the “Chicago Tribune,” later holding editorial leadership roles at the “Tribune” and “The Philadelphia Inquirer” and working closely with restaurant critics before joining “Bon Appétit.”

Today, Hernandez shapes stories that examine food through cultural and social perspectives. He recently led coverage exploring regional barbecue traditions and how immigrant communities continue to influence American food culture.

Another favorite project examined the relationship between food, community, and Oklahoma’s Black rodeos through photography.

“Those are the kinds of stories that I'm so proud to work on, and I’m always excited when they present themselves to me,” Hernandez says.

Sharing Lessons With the Next Generation

Alongside his editorial career, Hernandez teaches graduate journalism at the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at the City University of New York. He brings lessons from his Columbia education and professional experiences into his classroom.

He encourages aspiring journalists to read widely, experience art, and pursue opportunities that expand their perspectives. “Be a voracious consumer of art and media and film and experiences,” he advises. “Those are the things that make a writer.”

Hernandez also emphasizes the importance of embracing mistakes and allowing time to develop professionally without comparing one's progress to others.

“I grew the most when I quietly failed,” he says.

For Hernandez, curiosity and a willingness to explore drive meaningful storytelling. He cultivated those qualities during his years at Columbia and now shares them with the next generation of journalists.

“Columbia really did help shape me into who I am and what I’m doing today,” he says.

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