Tom Colicchio
Tom Colicchio, head judge of Bravo’s wildly popular reality show “Top Chef” can make even the most seasoned chefs shake in their boots. His reputation as a master chef and mentor helps make “Top Chef” one of the highest rated reality shows on television today. Tom was born in Elizabeth, New Jersey in 1962. His childhood was spent in the kitchen cooking with his mother and grandmother. But, it was not until his father suggested it as a career that Tom began to take cooking seriously. Learning from such renowned cookbooks as La Technique and La Methode, Tom began his career at the young age of 17 at Evelyn’s Seafood Restaurant in Elizabeth.
Tom then moved on to the well-known New York restaurant The Quilted Giraffe when he was promoted to sous chef after only four months. He also worked at Gotham Bar and Grill, Rakel, and Mondrian, where Food & Wine magazine named him one of the “Best New Chefs” in the United States. While Tom was executive chef there, the New York Times awarded the restaurant three stars.
Tom, along with is partner Danny Meyer, opened Gramercy Tavern in Manhattan. It was awarded three stars by Ruth Reichl of the New York Times while Tom was executive chef. She said Tom cooked with confidence and created dishes that had bold flavors and unusual harmonies. Tom won James Beard’s Best Chef New York Award in 2000 then won the Bon Appetit and Food Network’s Chef of the Year award in 2002. Gramercy Tavern won the Outstanding Service award in 2001 and was also voted Most Popular in New York City by Zagat in 2003 and 2005.
A year after opening Gramercy Tavern, Tom opened Craft in the same neighborhood. It was awarded three stars by William Grimes of the New York Times in 2001. Tom remains the co-owner of Gramercy Tavern, Craft, Craftbar, and ‘wichcraft in New York as well as Craftsteak at the MGM Grand Casino in Las Vegas. In May 2006, he opened Craftsteak New York then opened Craft Dallas in June 2006 and Craft LA in March 2007.
In addition to his restaurants, Tom has written two cookbooks. Think Like a Chef won the James Beard KitchenAid Cookbook award when it was released in 2001 and Craft of Cooking was released in 2003. His next book will be inspired by his restaurant ‘wichcraft and will feature sandwich recipes.
Not only is Tom a great chef, he is also very charitable. He works closely with Share Our Strength, City Harvest, Kids for Kids and many other charities. He is on the board of directors of Children of Bellevue, Doctors of the World, and Avero, Inc., which provide software applications for the hospitality industry.
Tom will be reprising his role as Head Judge of “Top Chef” next Wednesday (June 13) on the Bravo network at 10/9c.
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