14 May 21st - May 27th, 2026 phoenixnewtimes.com PHOENIX NEW TIMES | NEWS | FEATURE | FOOD & DRINK | ARTS & CULTURE | MUSIC | CONCERTS | CANNABIS | It wasn’t until 2014, when the Super Bowl landed in New Jersey, and they bumped into one another working at a dinner held at the American Museum of Natural History in Manhattan. “It was every football team owner and whoever they had on a table of 12,” Cochrane recalls. “I walked into this one room, and it was just, like, Kenny with 800 salad plates.” They chatted for a moment before Cuomo had to get back to salads. When Cochrane got to work on Monday, she found an email inviting her out for coffee, or, even better, dinner? “I was telling a friend of mine, ‘It’s kind of weird, you know? I know this guy through work. I don’t think I’m gonna do this,’” Cochrane says. “And she was like, ‘So you’re just gonna stay home and watch “Dateline”?’” She worried about their 10-year age gap. When they met, she was 43 and he was 33. He won her over anyway. “I just found his energy really intoxi- cating,” she says. “He just seemed so passionate about what he did for work, his friends, his life. And I really liked it.” In March, the couple celebrated 10 years of marriage. Three years ago, they went into business together. They run Orbit Collective, a company that works with aspirational restaurant owners to bring their visions to life. Cochrane tackles menu development, logis- tics and front-of-house operations. Cuomo focuses on the back-of-house, bringing in talented chefs, sommeliers, baristas and bartenders from his “orbit.” For Maeva, he tapped head chef Ben Klein. The slim chef, who stands with exceptional posture and wears his dark hair in a tight ponytail, worked at top restaurants in Portland and was living in Las Vegas when Cuomo met up with him in New York. “We’re having dinner together, and I was like, ‘Ben, it’s your time, bro. You’re ready. Let’s talk about a business thing,’” Cuomo says. At this point, Cuomo looks up from our table as a busser clears the coffee drinks. Lead bartender Jacob Leon carefully carries a black tray laden with colorful cocktails and mocktails. Cuomo pops up once again, and Leon and sommelier and general manager Ehecatl Perez sit down. Leon presents the Muse, a sour-apple mocktail; the Surreal Socialite, a straw- berry spritz; and a drink in development, tentatively called the Thorn of the Desert. Cuomo found Leon — an earnest former Marine working in IT and structural engi- neering for General Motors — by posting a job opening on Nextdoor. He wanted to find a local who had the pulse of Gilbert. Perez, the sommelier, met Cuomo after he stopped by for dessert and got chatting with the chef. They realized they’d worked at the same restaurant, at different times, in Mexico. Cuomo brought Perez aboard to manage the front of house and make wine recommendations that pair with each dish customers order. He presents a bottle of Georgian orange wine. Orange, or skin-contact wine, is a staple on menus at trendy local wine bars. It’s old news in places like New York or Chicago. I wondered how diners in Gilbert were receiving it. “I’ll explain it by the numbers,” Perez says in a thick Spanish accent. “We are selling way more orange than rosé.” RENT A HOUSE, BRING THE CAT At most of their restaurant gigs, Cuomo and Cochrane come in, hire staff, get the business humming, and move on. In the Valley, something felt different. The duo are keen to put down roots. A particularly cold New York winter drove Cochrane to seek warmer climes. When the Arizona opportunity came up, she admits, “I had to Google where Gilbert was.” Cuomo was more familiar, having visited Arizona as a kid. His grand- mother, aunt and uncle lived in the East Valley, the chef says. “This area means a lot to me,” Cuomo says. “I want this to be a home here. We got a little place. We brought our cat Fettuccine from New York. She’s lived her whole life in this apart- ment, and she’s a tiny little cat. Now, you know, I open up the door, she goes outside, she’s never been happier.” Cochrane sees the booming, wide-open Gilbert market as a promising space for new restaurants. “In New York, it can be very frus- trating to be a chef because there’s so many great restaurants,” she says. “It’s like, ‘Oh, you’re opening up an Italian restaurant? How unusual. There’s only 50 excellent Italian restaurants in this neighborhood alone.’” Maeva is staking out new territory in Gilbert. That could work against the new restaurant. But if East Valley customers are willing to step out of their comfort zones, and others are willing to drive in from Phoenix, they might just find something exceptional. Putting down roots in Arizona has other benefits for Cuomo. He has concepts on the West Coast that are easier to reach from his newfound Arizona hub. The Maeva team is thinking about expanding with a bakery next door. Cuomo dreams of bringing Maeva to Scottsdale one day. He spent his life cooking in some of the world’s best kitchens, eating at Michelin- honored restaurants. The Michelin Guide is coming to Arizona for the first time this year, with a new Southwest guide focusing on restaurants in our state plus Nevada, New Mexico and Utah. Recognition from the world’s most famous restaurant guide could put his adopted city on the map. Cuomo insists he’s not working for accolades. He’s pushing his team to achieve excellence, and if that impresses Michelin inspectors or James Beard Award judges, then so be it. He seemed more moved at the memory of a recent visit from his father, who came west to see the new restaurant. “He told me, this food, the service, this is the best you have ever been,” Cuomo says. “It meant a lot.” Three solid hours into our chat, I move to wrap things up. The chef tries once more to feed me lunch. “Maybe a salad?” he asks. I decline, and he begins a string of thank yous. He thanks me for my time, my interest in the restaurant, for talking with his staff. As he does, he slips: “You’re so talented,” he tells me. Of course, he hadn’t yet seen a word of my article. But it felt like words of encouragement he’s used to giving his staff. At Maeva, young culinary professionals are pushed to dig into their talents and passions. Something about how he says those words makes you feel like you ought to live up to them. As I get up to leave, a parting course lands on the table after all: a heavy brown paper bag packed with neatly wrapped pastries and a half-loaf of crusty, home- made bread. A little something for the long drive back from the East Valley. Chefs Cuomo and Klein are turning out some of the best cuisine anywhere in Gilbert. (Jacob Tyler Dunn) Dinner is now served as a tasting menu or à la carte. (Jacob Tyler Dunn) Gilbert Gourmet from p 13
