About Lauren

Lauren DeSantis combines her passions for food and television in Capital Cooking with Lauren DeSantis, a television series highlighting the culinary and cultural riches of our nation’s capital. By incorporating dishes from the many ethnic cuisines represented in Washington, D.C., Lauren's cooking style is continually evolving. In each episode, Lauren takes viewers gastronomic journey to cook with the best chefs of D.C., Washington insiders and more.

She is a lawyer by day and host/producer of her television show on the weekends. Lauren grew up in an Italian family in St. Louis, Missouri, where eating well was the key to every family gathering. She studied political science at Truman State University and later received a J.D. from Duke University School of Law. Throughout her education, Lauren honed her cooking and entertaining skills by hosting numerous dinner parties with her girlfriends. After graduating from Duke Law, Lauren married her husband, Corey Then, and moved to Washington, D.C., to begin a career as an attorney.

Although her life has become increasingly hectic, she always makes time for cooking because it provides her an outlet for creativity and fun. She decided to pursue her dream by expanding her culinary knowledge and attending L’Academie de Cuisine. In addition to filming her show, she teaches cooking classes.  She is also the author of Capital Cooking Cookbook.  Not only is Lauren the editor of the Capital Cooking Show blog, but she also writes for DC Culinary Travel Examiner, WashingtonEats.com and W-USA 9.