Jean-Georges Vongerichten

Jean-Georges Vongerichten (born in Alsace, France, on March 16, 1957) is a French chef.

Vongerichten owns restaurants in Miami Beach, Las Vegas, London, Paris, Shanghai, and Tokyo, as well as New York's Jean-Georges restaurant and Tangará Jean Georges in São Paulo's Palácio Tangará, by Oetker Collection.

He is head chef of Eden Rock, St Barths.

Vongerichten is the author of five cookbooks, two with Mark Bittman.

Born and raised on the outskirts of Strasbourg in Alsace, France, Vongerichten had a family life centered around the kitchen, where each day his mother and grandmother prepared lunch for the almost 50 employees of their business.

His love of food cemented his choice of career at the age of 16, when his parents brought him to the three-star Michelin-rated Auberge de l'Ill for a birthday dinner.

Vongerichten began his training soon after in a work-study program at the Auberge de l'Ill as an apprentice to Chef Paul Haeberlin.

He went on to work with France's top chefs, including Paul Bocuse and Louis Outhier at L'Oasis in the south of France.

Often working with Outhier, Vongerichten opened ten restaurants around the world from 1980 to 1985, including the Oriental Hotel in Bangkok, the Meridien Hotel in Singapore, and the Mandarin Hotel in Hong Kong.

Vongerichten arrived in the United States in 1985 under the auspices of consulting chef Louis Outhier, opening the Le Marquis de Lafayette restaurant in Boston.

A year later he arrived in New York to take over as executive chef at Lafayette in the Drake Swissôtel, earning four stars from The New York Times at the age of 29.

There he met financiers Bob Giraldi and Phil Suarez.

Vongerichten, Giraldi and Suarez opened a bistro, JoJo, in 1991.

JoJo was named Best New Restaurant of the Year, and earned three stars from The New York Times.

United States

International

Vongerichten's next venture, Vong, paid homage to his passion for the spices and flavors of the East, earning a three-star review from The New York Times for his "explosive flavorful food".

In an adjacent space to Vong, Vongerichten opened The Lipstick Cafe, catering to the midtown business crowd and serving breakfast and lunch in a casual, upscale setting.

The Lipstick Cafe has since closed.

A year and a half later, Vongerichten opened a second Vong in the Knightsbridge area of London, earning a three-star review and the 1996 vote for the Evening Standard's "Newcomer of the Year."

In March 1997, Vongerichten opened Jean-Georges restaurant in the Trump International Hotel and Tower, earning a four-star review from The New York Times less than three months after opening and the "Chef of the Year Award" from John Mariani at Esquire.

In September 1997, he opened Vong in the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Hong Kong, which the Robb Report awarded "Best Restaurant in the World" award in 1998.

Vongerichten followed the third Vong with The Mercer Kitchen, in July 1998, in the Mercer Hotel in SoHo.

Featuring an American-Provincial menu and "communal" style tables in the open-kitchen area, the restaurant is set to close at the end of 2022.

The reason Vongerichten gave: "It's been 25 years, a great run."

In 1998, Jean George's Prime steakhouse opened in the Bellagio resort in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The steakhouse serves dinner nightly and offers guests patio seating overlooking the Fountains of Bellagio.

It is rated Four Diamonds by the American Automobile Association.

A fourth Vong opened in Chicago, partnering with restaurant corporation Lettuce Entertain You and Geoff Alexander, to become VTK (Vong's Thai Kitchen) in 2002.

This change was to make the signature Jean-George style available to a wider audience at a more accessible price point.

All three additional Vongs, including VTK, have since closed.

In 2004, Vongerichten opened Spice Market, which centered its cuisine around Southeast Asian street food in New York City.

Perry Street opened in 2005 (French-American) also in New York City.

Chambers Kitchen in Minneapolis opened in 2007.

In 2008, Vongerichten teamed up with the Matsushita Brothers from Tokyo to open Matsugen.

Vongerichten opened his newest steakhouse in December 2008 atop The Phoenician Resort in Scottsdale, Arizona.

With fare consisting of steaks and seafood, the restaurant has received four stars from The Arizona Republic and is regarded as one of the top-three steakhouses in the Phoenix/Scottsdale area.

In November 2009 it was revealed that Vong was closing at its longtime location indefinitely after it decided not to renew the lease.

It closed in September 2016 due to an increase in rent.

Jean-Georges Restaurant also received a three-star rating from the Michelin Guide, an accolade it held until 2017, when its rating was reduced to two stars.