Graham Elliot
Encyclopedia
Graham Elliot Bowles known professionally as Graham Elliot, is a Chicago, Illinois-based chef
.
, as a self-described "Navy brat". He dropped out of high school at the age of 16 and started out in the food business as a dishwasher and bus boy for two years. He attended culinary school at Johnson & Wales University
. In the summer of 2010, he changed his name professionally "after a lifetime of confusion and typos", according to his publicist.
. It was there that he was named one of the ten Best New Chefs of 2004 by Food & Wine Magazine
. Elliot then moved to Chicago to work under the famed Charlie Trotter
and Rick Tramonto at TRU. He later toiled at Avenues at The Peninsula hotel, also in Chicago, where he received numerous accolades. Under Elliot, Avenue earned a four-star rating from the Chicago Tribune
, Chicago Sun-Times
and Chicago Magazine
as well as a AAA Five Diamond Award.
In 2007, Elliot faced off against Iron Chef Bobby Flay
on the TV show Iron Chef America
, with the secret ingredient of chocolate
. Elliot put up a good fight but lost to Flay by a total score of 49-47. He appeared on "The Today Show."
In May 2008, he opened the eponymous Graham Elliot, which was his first restaurant and the first bistronomic restaurant in Chicago
, Illinois
. It has received two stars from the Chicago Tribune, two-and-a-half stars from the Chicago Sun-Times and one star in the 2011 MICHELIN Guide
. In 2009, he appeared on the TV show Top Chef Masters
. In the show, he cooked for The Heart and Stroke Foundation due to his nephew needing a heart transplant. He has been nominated for a James Beard Award three times.
In 2010, Elliot became a judge on the U.S. version of the reality show MasterChef, along with Chef Gordon Ramsay
and winemaker/restaurateur Joe Bastianich. He also opened his second Chicago restaurant, Grahamwhich. He appeared as the Culinary Ambassador at Lollapalooza
2010, a three-day music festival in Chicago, where he cooked for both the public as well as backstage for the performers. Chicago Magazine published an article in which writer Cassie Walker unflatteringly described Elliot's menu offerings based on samples served at what had been intended as a tasting party for members of the media. Elliot responded by delivering a profanity-laced tweet
with insults directed at Walker and the magazine. Despite this incident, Elliott was invited to serve Lollapalooza again in 2011.
Chef
A chef is a person who cooks professionally for other people. Although over time the term has come to describe any person who cooks for a living, traditionally it refers to a highly skilled professional who is proficient in all aspects of food preparation.-Etymology:The word "chef" is borrowed ...
.
Personal life
Elliot was born in Seattle, WashingtonSeattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
, as a self-described "Navy brat". He dropped out of high school at the age of 16 and started out in the food business as a dishwasher and bus boy for two years. He attended culinary school at Johnson & Wales University
Johnson & Wales University
Johnson & Wales University is a private, nonprofit, co-educational, career-oriented university with four campuses located throughout the United States. Providence, Rhode Island, USA, is home to JWU's first and largest of four currently operating campuses. Founded as a business school in 1914, by...
. In the summer of 2010, he changed his name professionally "after a lifetime of confusion and typos", according to his publicist.
Career
Elliot's first position following culinary school was at the Mansion on Turtle Creek, a five diamond/five-star property in Dallas, working under Chef Dean Fearing. He then went to The Jackson House Inn & Restaurant in Woodstock, VermontVermont
Vermont is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state ranks 43rd in land area, , and 45th in total area. Its population according to the 2010 census, 630,337, is the second smallest in the country, larger only than Wyoming. It is the only New England...
. It was there that he was named one of the ten Best New Chefs of 2004 by Food & Wine Magazine
Food & Wine Magazine
Food & Wine is a monthly magazine published by American Express Publishing. It was founded in 1978 by Ariane and Michael Batterberry. It features recipes, cooking tips, travel information, restaurant reviews, chefs, wine pairings and seasonal/holiday content and has been credited by The New York...
. Elliot then moved to Chicago to work under the famed Charlie Trotter
Charlie Trotter
Charlie Trotter is a chef and restaurateur.-Biography:A graduate of New Trier High School, Trotter started cooking professionally in 1982 after earning a degree in political science from the University of Wisconsin–Madison. For the next 5 years, he worked and studied in Chicago, San Francisco at...
and Rick Tramonto at TRU. He later toiled at Avenues at The Peninsula hotel, also in Chicago, where he received numerous accolades. Under Elliot, Avenue earned a four-star rating from the Chicago Tribune
Chicago Tribune
The Chicago Tribune is a major daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, and the flagship publication of the Tribune Company. Formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" , it remains the most read daily newspaper of the Chicago metropolitan area and the Great Lakes region and is...
, Chicago Sun-Times
Chicago Sun-Times
The Chicago Sun-Times is an American daily newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois. It is the flagship paper of the Sun-Times Media Group.-History:The Chicago Sun-Times is the oldest continuously published daily newspaper in the city...
and Chicago Magazine
Chicago (magazine)
Chicago is a monthly magazine published by the Tribune Company. It concentrates on lifestyle and human interest stories, and on reviewing restaurants, travel, fashion, and theatre from or nearby Chicago. Its circulation in 2004 was 165,000, larger than People in its market...
as well as a AAA Five Diamond Award.
In 2007, Elliot faced off against Iron Chef Bobby Flay
Bobby Flay
Robert William "Bobby" Flay is an American celebrity chef, restaurateur and reality television personality. He is the owner and executive chef of 12 restaurants: Mesa Grill in Las Vegas, New York City, and the Bahamas ; Bar Americain in New York City and Uncasville, Connecticut; Bobby Flay Steak...
on the TV show Iron Chef America
Iron Chef America
Iron Chef America: The Series is an American cooking show based on Fuji Television's Iron Chef, and is the second American adaptation of the series, following the failed Iron Chef USA. The show is produced by Food Network, which also carried a dubbed version of the original Iron Chef. Like the...
, with the secret ingredient of chocolate
Chocolate
Chocolate is a raw or processed food produced from the seed of the tropical Theobroma cacao tree. Cacao has been cultivated for at least three millennia in Mexico, Central and South America. Its earliest documented use is around 1100 BC...
. Elliot put up a good fight but lost to Flay by a total score of 49-47. He appeared on "The Today Show."
In May 2008, he opened the eponymous Graham Elliot, which was his first restaurant and the first bistronomic restaurant in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
. It has received two stars from the Chicago Tribune, two-and-a-half stars from the Chicago Sun-Times and one star in the 2011 MICHELIN Guide
Michelin Guide
The Michelin Guide is a series of annual guide books published by Michelin for over a dozen countries. The term normally refers to the Michelin Red Guide, the oldest and best-known European hotel and restaurant guide, which awards the Michelin stars...
. In 2009, he appeared on the TV show Top Chef Masters
Top Chef Masters
Top Chef Masters is an American reality competition show currently broadcast on the cable television network Bravo. It is a spinoff of Bravo's hit show Top Chef. In the series, 24 world-renowned chefs compete against each other in weekly challenges...
. In the show, he cooked for The Heart and Stroke Foundation due to his nephew needing a heart transplant. He has been nominated for a James Beard Award three times.
In 2010, Elliot became a judge on the U.S. version of the reality show MasterChef, along with Chef Gordon Ramsay
Gordon Ramsay
Gordon James Ramsay, OBE is a Scottish chef, television personality and restaurateur. He has been awarded 13 Michelin stars....
and winemaker/restaurateur Joe Bastianich. He also opened his second Chicago restaurant, Grahamwhich. He appeared as the Culinary Ambassador at Lollapalooza
Lollapalooza
Lollapalooza is an annual music festival featuring popular alternative rock, heavy metal, punk rock and hip hop bands, dance and comedy performances, and craft booths. It has also provided a platform for non-profit and political groups. The music festival hosts more than 160,000 people over a...
2010, a three-day music festival in Chicago, where he cooked for both the public as well as backstage for the performers. Chicago Magazine published an article in which writer Cassie Walker unflatteringly described Elliot's menu offerings based on samples served at what had been intended as a tasting party for members of the media. Elliot responded by delivering a profanity-laced tweet
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
with insults directed at Walker and the magazine. Despite this incident, Elliott was invited to serve Lollapalooza again in 2011.