Who's your favorite american chef?
 

He or she is the guy/girl with the vision, the kick, the one who can whip up anything in a matter of minutes. you love his/her sauces, their delicate approach to presentation, and most importantly, is the one that kicks the knockers off your taste buds every time.


For me it's all about Julia Child:

as a chef, she really changed american cuisine by introducing (and making it easily transferrable) to the american market. i respect her whole history, and i love a good Smith girl. she was class from the very beginning, and with 'The French Chef' she made her mark on american history, and me, by teaching us all how to make french bread in the modern kitchen.


so who's your favorite chef?

My mother OBM.

Wylie Dufresne

Bill Telepan

Chef Boyardee.

As a chef, he really changed American cuisine by putting reheatable Italian food in a can.

My son.

my mother in law. Never had a bad meal prepared by her hands. She even made peas taste good and I hate peas.

Mario Batali - He never fails to make my mouth water when I'm watching Iron Chef. Everyone else makes at least one thing that looks gross.

Mario Batali is good-- i second him! have you been his restaurant Esca in NYC? there's also Babbo's, been there?

speaking of which, I work for Gourmet magazine and we're hosting an instant win contest and giving away 35 two day trip at a top resort.

Enter @ http://condenast.eprize.net/gourmet/...ffiliate_id=1v

all you have to do is register, watch a video of David Pasternack (of Esca NYC, jointly owned by your favorite Mario Batali) prepare geoduck (clam, this video is hilarious) and take a 5-question quiz. You don't even have to get the questions right to win! After the quiz you'll know INSTANTLY if you've won or not. If you have any questions regarding the sweepstakes, just ask me. I'm here to help. Or if you'd like to chat more about Batali, i'm a huge fan of his italian cuisine.

Joseph Wrede, among others. He's the chef at Joseph's table in Taos' Hotel La Fonda.

Food there is pretty incredible!

Alice Waters. Julia. Locally, Reed Herron has made a significant impression on the San Francisco food scene. On tv, my favorites are Sara Moulton, Jacques Pepin and the cool and down to earth chefs on the show from Cook's Magazine...America's Cooking Show or whatever the name is. I like straightforward excellence.

My man Marteen.

My daughter who's a CIA trained pastry chef! And if I want something more substantial, her boyfriend also a CIA chef.

I have to go with Julia as well. She was really great.

I do love Alton Brown though - the science behind cooking.

gotta say, i'm quite partial to Sara Moulton-- she's the celebrity around here at Gourmet mag. AND, she was good friends with my girl Julia.

like i suggested angethereader earlier, you would definitely enjoy entering Gourmet's sweepstakes for a free trip to a top resort.

check it out @ http://condenast.eprize.net/gourmet/...ffiliate_id=1v .

like i said, i have a lot of knowledge regarding these chefs, and i'd love to chat about them more if you'd like. also, if you have any questions regarding the sweepstakes, i'm more than happy to answer them for you.

-J

Yeah, Alton's pretty cool. I like his science facts.

I do like Giada di Lorentis though. "So so goood". She makes italian food really easy to make everyday and I like her shortcuts.
...although now that i'm in atkins, I have found the atkins cook books to have super yummy recipes! this is one diet I can stick with. Whoohoo, going on to size 2 now! (sorry i had to add that last bit - teehee).

My dad was the best! Oh, how I miss his cooking.

Also really love Julia and Jacques Pepin. It was a thrill for me to see Julia's kitchen in the Smithsonian a couple of years ago! I stood and stared at everything for the longest time. :-)

Ina Garten. I love how she cooks and entertains.

travelisfun - do you work at Gourmet? I would love to hear more about Sara Moulton. I know she was a protege of Julia Child. I love Gourmet and their approach to food and travel. Would love to hear about any chefs!

Stu Dudley..he cooked for me once but didn't realize it.

Jacques Pepin, with Lidia a close 2d.

Chef Boyardee? That was actually FOOD? Who knew?

Nothing that color of radioactive orange can be food.

travelisfun..how cool is that to work at Gourmet Magazine!

Of course Julia and love Ina Garten and Patricia Wells..and me!

Racheal Ray!

WooHoo!!

Long live Yummo and EVOO!!!

Oops. I forgot that I watch Lidia constantly. She's my favorite chef currently on tv.

Yes, Patricia Wells is wonderful and now that we are seeing more of her, she is lovely and charming.

I guess we are so lucky to have such a proliferation of chefs to be having this thread.

I always admired Julia Child, but after reading her autobiography I love her more!! She was so dedicated to her craft and had a Great sense of humor...what an adventure she had!!

There's a big difference between cooks and chefs. If you're talking about "Amercian chefs", it has to be Julia.

I've never eaten food that Anthony Bourdain prepared, but I love his books and Travel Channel show. He seems like a cool guy.

a cook is someone that cooks, a chef is the boss

Not always granni. Sometimes the chef anwers to a F&B director or or an Exec Chef or the owner.

The late, great Justin Wilson. His cookbook is the most used and well stained cookbook my family owns.

Rachael Ray for second wife only. As for chef skills, I looked at her cookbook and the recipes appear to be at the Campbell's Soup cookbook level. Not what I want for supper.

My son is an Exec. Chef and told me that the chef is the boss. Be it of his department of the whole place, just like a manager is the boss, A COOK COOKS

granni - my point wasn't a debate about the pecking order in a kitchen so much (and I don't dispute your comments). My point was that there are some people who claim to be "chefs" but arguably aren't.

travelisfun,

Those video segments are terrific! Now if only I could win something!! ;-)

granni, my husband also has his Chef designation from the CIA, the ACF, and the AofC.

He is also a GM and an owner. His chefs cook, he doesn't.

Alex Ureña of Ureña in Manhattan.

P.S. He's not American (obviously) but he is *in* America... :)

Patrick O'Connell at the Inn at Little Washington! Has a sense of whimsy and only uses the freshest stuff. BTW--I LOVED the Julia autobiography too! Beautiful book!

All these foodies! Anybody going to the NRA Show in Chicago this weekend? I will be there from Sat to Tues and have some time to hook up in between parties. I am the Program Coordinator for DiRoNA (Distinguished Restaurants of North America). Would love to bump into a Fodorite or two....

Paula Dean gets me laughing so hard I have to go look up the recipes on the website. My wife says there is no way Giatta eats her own cooking swears she would weigh 300# if she did. Emeril has so many combinations with his New England roots and living in New Orleans.

hulajake,

That's what we say about Giada too!!!! We actually think the only bit she has of her food is the one she does in front of the camera. She cooks ALOT with butther and (and also too carby for me now) but she is so tiny! No way she eats any of her fattening stuff. Either that or she works out the rest of the time when she's not filming!