CHRISTOPHER LANDY AND ELLEN WAGGETT

Co-Owners and Founders

Ellen and Chris are the unlikely founders of Bimi’s Cheese Shop, Canteen and Bar. Theatrical designers by training, the couple designs major television shows and events through their company Vibrant Design. They have raised their two children shuttling between Brooklyn and Columbia County, and have called Austerlitz their home for 18 years. They are robustly committed to both preserving and revitalizing Columbia County through hard work and thoughtful investment in the area. They take on projects others wouldn’t dream of, but their confidence in their on tenacity and creativity have a proven track record of success.

Ellen is currently the production designer of The Amber Ruffin Show and Late Night with Seth Meyers. Her credits include numerous shows for Food Network- most notably Chopped. She designed Colbert’s Christmas Special (for which she was nominated for an Emmy), sitcoms Whoopi, Hope and Faith, and Sherri, and spent years as the art director for movies, sitcoms, and episodic television shows.

Chris is an Emmy award winning lighting designer whose credits and clients include Oprah Winfrey, The Tonight Show, John Oliver, Comedy Central, Food Network, Netflix, and MTV.

Ali Sanzo

Chef

Chef Ali grew up in the Hudson Valley in a close-knit Italian family, where food was at the heart of every celebration and milestone. Her cooking is rooted in years of hands-on experience and inspired by seasonal ingredients, family traditions, and the simple pleasure of gathering around the table. Prior to joining Bimi’s, Ali was the chef at the wildly popular West Taghkanic Diner in Ancram.

Ali married her high school sweetheart, and together they are raising their young daughter. At home, she carries on many of the same traditions she grew up with and loves the everyday rituals of family life. Outside the kitchen, Ali enjoys homemaking, nature, animals, and time with family—finding inspiration in the beauty and simplicity of everyday life.