Sherry E. Cardoso

Cynthia, West Village

We want to start of by emphasizing: Cynthia’s Executive Chef and Partner, Sherry Cardoso, has a way of making the impossible look effortless. On the day we shot her interview, she moved through her kitchen mid-conversation, plating, tasting, adjusting a scaldingly hot binchotan, all without losing a beat of the story she was telling us. There was no sense of split attention whatsoever; cooking and talking seemed to come from the same place for her, which, once you hear her speak about food as memory and storytelling, makes perfect sense. We got a chance to talk corn custard, growing up in Minas Gerais, and what it means to open a restaurant in the West Village she once walked through in awe.

Full Name, Age, and Where are you from?

Sherry E. Cardoso, 39 years old, born in NYC raised in Minas Gerais Brazil.

What is your title and why did you decide to open Cynthia?

Executive Chef and Partner, The reason I decided to join forces with Claire (DuBois) and open Cynthia was because I believed in what we could build together. I saw an opportunity to create something that went beyond just opening a restaurant—a place rooted in my food, my story, sustainability, and the kind of hospitality I believe in.

What inspired you to get into this industry?

 What made me fall in love was hospitality was realizing that food is so much more than just what’s on the plate. It’s connection, memory and storytelling.

What's one detail about Cynthia that most guests probably don't notice but means a lot to you?

A detail that means a lot to me is that the menu at Cynthia’s is a love letter to my mom and to Brazil. So much of who I am began around food and the flavor I grew up with. Some of our current dishes carry so many memories of my childhood, of my family, of my mother and a place that will always feel like home, being in New York I get to tell story through the lenses of a professional chef while showcasing seasonalities and a few techniques I picked up here and there.

What do you think makes someone become a regular?

I think people become regulars when they feel like they belong somewhere. In a city like New York, our job as hospitality workers is to create community, to create a place where people feel seen, welcomed, and genuinely cared for.For me, that’s the recipe for creating real human connection. It’s not just about the food; it’s about how people feel when they walk through the door, and whether they leave feeling like they want to come back.I know that, slowly, we’re building that at Cynthia. We’re creating our own community and our own following, one guest at a time, and that’s something I’m really proud of.

If someone has just one meal at Cynthia, what dish tells your story best and why?

I’d want them to try the corn custard because it probably tells my story better than any other dish. It’s rooted in flavors and traditions I grew up with in Brazil. Pamonha is a naturally sweet Brazilian corn tamale, and during summer break, my family would gather at my uncle’s farm. We’d spend the whole day shucking corn, filling the husks, laughing, eating, and being together. Those memories are deeply connected to food for me. At Cynthia, we’ve transformed that memory into what we call a corn tamale, made with sheep’s milk and Osetra caviar. It’s paired with corn ice cream, which brings me back to another very specific childhood memory: in Brazil, street vendors would come to the school gates during recess selling corn paletas. That flavor takes me right back there. So in one dish, there’s my childhood, my family, Brazil, and the way I think about food today

The West Village is filled with legacy restaurants and neighborhood institutions. What does it mean to open a restaurant in a place with so much history?

The West Village means something very personal to me. I remember walking through these streets when I was 14, right after moving here from Brazil. I was completely in awe of the neighborhood and its charm. Back then, I could barely afford much. I remember eating at Gray’s Papaya because it was one of the places I could afford, and even those simple experiences felt special to me. Fast-forward 25 years, and I have a restaurant in the West Village, I still have moments where I have to step back and take that in. To open Cynthia here feels bigger than anything I could have imagined at 14. It feels like a full-circle moment, not just for my career, but for the immigrant kid who arrived in New York with a dream and never could have imagined that one day she would have a place of her own in a neighborhood she once walked through in awe.

Hospitality often starts long before the food reaches the table. What do you hope guests feel within the first five minutes of walking into Cynthia?

 For me, hospitality is ultimately about human connection. Food is how I tell my story, but hospitality is how I invite people into it. If, within those first five minutes, someone feels a little more at home than they did when they walked in, then we’re doing our job.

What's a piece of advice you have for aspiring female chefs who want to follow in your footsteps?

Keep going. It’s hard, and there will be moments when you question yourself, your choices, and whether it’s all worth it. But it is. Keep learning, keep pushing, keep taking up space, and don’t let the difficult moments convince you that you don’t belong.

What restaurant, café, or bar do you find yourself frequenting most after work?

I looooooveeeee Bangkok Supper Club. Their hospitality is incredible, their drinks are some of the best in the city, and the food is impeccable. I can go there after a long day, relax, eat something delicious, have a great drink, and feel taken care of.

How do you relax outside of work?

I work out every day, which is probably my biggest form of therapy outside of work. During the summer, I force myself to spend as much time outdoors as possible. I love a long beach day in Long Beach, or something as simple as hanging out in the park with friends, soaking up the sun and doing absolutely nothing. After spending so much time inside a kitchen, being outside and around people I love is how I reset.