About Us

Flourish Baking Company and Midi Foods, Inc. are owned and operated by chefs Diane Forley and Michael Otsuka.

Diane and Michael share a career of professional cooking and rigorous training grounded in families marked by diverse cultural experiences
and cooking sensibilities – Diane’s in Egypt, Guatemala, and Hungary, and Michael’s in the eclectic traditions of Japanese-American and
Viennese-Jewish cultures. Each credits the wide-ranging meals at their childhood family tables with fostering an early appreciation for the
art of mixing flavors and ingredients.

Diane and Michael began their training with a group of notable chefs.  In New York, Diane worked for Alfred Portale and David Burke. In Los Angeles, Michael worked for Joachim Splichal and Claude Segal. Both Diane and Michael continued their training in France under master chefs Michel Bras, Jacques Maximin, Gaston LeNotre, and Michel Guerard.

As chefs, Diane and Michael pursued independent careers. Michael served as executive chef of several kitchens, most notably Patina in
Los Angeles and Thalia in Manhattan. Diane opened her first restaurant, Verbena in New York City as chef-owner followed by Bar
Demi, an elegant wine bar that featured an award-winning seventy half-bottle wine list. After marrying, Diane and Michael joined forces
at Verbena while Diane completed her acclaimed cookbook, Anatomy of a Dish. Her work featured a collection of recipes developed out of
Verbena and structured around Diane’s interest in combining flavors through underlying botanical relationships.

After nine years running Verbena, Diane and Michael spent several years working in California, first in Ojai and then in San Francisco,
before returning to New York in 2007.

In 2009 Diane and Michael launched their new venture, Flourish Baking Company.