Early Life in France
Born and raised on the outskirts of Strasbourg in Alsace, France, Vongerichten’s earliest family memories are about food. The Vongerichten home centered around the kitchen, where each day his mother and grandmother would prepare lunch for the almost 50 employees in their family-owned business. His love for food cemented into his choice for a career at the age of 16, when his parents brought him to the 3-star Michelin-rated Auberge de l’IIl for a birthday dinner.
Culinary Education
Vongerichten began his training soon after in a work-study program at the Auberge de l'III as an apprentice to Chef Paul Haeberlin. He went on to work with the top chefs in France, including Paul Bocuse and Louis Outhier at L’Oasis in the south of France. With this three-star Michelin training, Vongerichten won a position at the Oriental Hotel in Bangkok. From 1980 to 1985, he opened 10 restaurants around the world, including one at the Meridien Hotel in Singapore and another at the Mandarin Hotel in Hong Kong.
Relocation to America
Vongerichten arrived in the United States in 1985, opening the Lafayette restaurant in Boston. A year later he arrived in New York to take over the executive Chef position at Lafayette in the Drake Swissôtel, generating critical acclaim with his innovative interpretation of classic French cuisine and earning four stars from The New York Times at the age of 29. Vongerichten opened his bistro JoJo in 1991. JoJo was named Best New Restaurant of the Year, and earned three stars from The New York Times, in which Food critic Ruth Reichl claimed: "His food took my breath away".
Vong
His next venture, Vong, paid homage to his passion for the spices and flavors of the East. Using over 150 different herbs and spices to create his take on Thai-inspired French cuisine, the menu at Vong impressed critics, earning another three-star review from The New York Times for his "explosive flavorful food". In an adjacent space to Vong, Vongerichten also 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.
Jean-Georges at the Trump International Hotel
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 magazine. Jean Georges Restaurant remains one of 3 restaurants in the city awarded four stars by the New York Times and three stars by the Michelin Guide.
Frank Bruni of The Times said it offers “accessible elegance,” providing “classic French indulgence with a contemporary flair.” The restaurant trades “the richness of traditional French cooking for a different kind of intensity,” he added — it eliminates “thick sauces and embraces oils and broths, preferring them for their lightness and for the way they release their scents, like the perfume of lemon grass that rose from a bath of Asian herbs and seeds around a delicately baked lobster tartine.”
Expanding the Brand
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 London Evening Standard’s "Newcomer of the Year". In September 1997, he opened Vong in the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Hong Kong, which Robb Report awarded "Best Restaurant in the World" award in 1998 . A fourth Vong in Chicago changed its name and format to VTK (Vong's Thai Kitchen) in 2002. The 2nd and 3rd Vongs have since closed.
Vongerichten followed with The Mercer Kitchen, opened in July 1998, in the stylish Mercer Hotel in Soho. This venture features an American-Provincial menu and ‘communal’ style tables in the open kitchen area. Another addition is the Prime Steakhouse in Steve Wynn’s Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas, which opened in October 1998.
Vongerichten opened Spice Market (Southeast Asian street food) in 2004 and Perry Street in 2005 (French-American)in NYC, as well as the Chambers Kitchen in Minneapolis in 2007.
Starwood Hotels
Vongerichten and partner Phil Suarez have formed a new company with Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. and Catterton Partners, a consumer-focused private-equity firm which will own, operate, manage and license restaurants in Starwood properties as well as freestanding concepts not attached to the hotel giant's lodging outlets. The deal calls for seven Spice Markets and other concepts world wide. The total number of eating destinations could total 56 with this contract. The first to open will be Spice Markets at new W Hotels in both Atlanta and Istanbul.
Vancouver Restaurant
Vongerichten is opening a restaurant at the Hotel Shangri-La Vancouver, a luxury hotel that Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts will open in early 2009. “Market by Jean-Georges” is the first collaboration between Shangri-La and Mr. Vongerichten and is the famous chef's first involvement with Canadian or west coast dining.
Influence
New York Magazine wrote that in the past two decades, no single chef has had more influence on the way New Yorkers dine out—or on the way other chefs cook and other restaurants look. “He invented America’s answer to nouvelle cuisine,” says Mario Batali, who knows something about starting culinary trends. “When I first came to New York, his book Simple Cuisine was the holy grail for young chefs, and JoJo was the hottest ticket in town.”
Controversy
In September, 2008, Vongerichten agreed to settle a lawsuit for $1.7 million filed by staff who claimed tips from several of his restaurants had been redirected to managers.
Books
Simple to Spectacular (co-authored with Mark Bittman) (2000), ISBN 0-7679-0360-9
Jean-Georges: Cooking At Home with a Four-Star Chef (co-authored with Mark Bittman) (1998), ISBN 0-7679-0155-X
Simple Cuisine: The Easy, New Approach to Four-Star Cooking (1991), ISBN 0-13-195059-2
Asian Flavorings of Jean-Georges (October, 2007)
Born and raised on the outskirts of Strasbourg in Alsace, France, Vongerichten’s earliest family memories are about food. The Vongerichten home centered around the kitchen, where each day his mother and grandmother would prepare lunch for the almost 50 employees in their family-owned business. His love for food cemented into his choice for a career at the age of 16, when his parents brought him to the 3-star Michelin-rated Auberge de l’IIl for a birthday dinner.
Culinary Education
Vongerichten began his training soon after in a work-study program at the Auberge de l'III as an apprentice to Chef Paul Haeberlin. He went on to work with the top chefs in France, including Paul Bocuse and Louis Outhier at L’Oasis in the south of France. With this three-star Michelin training, Vongerichten won a position at the Oriental Hotel in Bangkok. From 1980 to 1985, he opened 10 restaurants around the world, including one at the Meridien Hotel in Singapore and another at the Mandarin Hotel in Hong Kong.
Relocation to America
Vongerichten arrived in the United States in 1985, opening the Lafayette restaurant in Boston. A year later he arrived in New York to take over the executive Chef position at Lafayette in the Drake Swissôtel, generating critical acclaim with his innovative interpretation of classic French cuisine and earning four stars from The New York Times at the age of 29. Vongerichten opened his bistro JoJo in 1991. JoJo was named Best New Restaurant of the Year, and earned three stars from The New York Times, in which Food critic Ruth Reichl claimed: "His food took my breath away".
Vong
His next venture, Vong, paid homage to his passion for the spices and flavors of the East. Using over 150 different herbs and spices to create his take on Thai-inspired French cuisine, the menu at Vong impressed critics, earning another three-star review from The New York Times for his "explosive flavorful food". In an adjacent space to Vong, Vongerichten also 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.
Jean-Georges at the Trump International Hotel
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 magazine. Jean Georges Restaurant remains one of 3 restaurants in the city awarded four stars by the New York Times and three stars by the Michelin Guide.
Frank Bruni of The Times said it offers “accessible elegance,” providing “classic French indulgence with a contemporary flair.” The restaurant trades “the richness of traditional French cooking for a different kind of intensity,” he added — it eliminates “thick sauces and embraces oils and broths, preferring them for their lightness and for the way they release their scents, like the perfume of lemon grass that rose from a bath of Asian herbs and seeds around a delicately baked lobster tartine.”
Expanding the Brand
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 London Evening Standard’s "Newcomer of the Year". In September 1997, he opened Vong in the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Hong Kong, which Robb Report awarded "Best Restaurant in the World" award in 1998 . A fourth Vong in Chicago changed its name and format to VTK (Vong's Thai Kitchen) in 2002. The 2nd and 3rd Vongs have since closed.
Vongerichten followed with The Mercer Kitchen, opened in July 1998, in the stylish Mercer Hotel in Soho. This venture features an American-Provincial menu and ‘communal’ style tables in the open kitchen area. Another addition is the Prime Steakhouse in Steve Wynn’s Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas, which opened in October 1998.
Vongerichten opened Spice Market (Southeast Asian street food) in 2004 and Perry Street in 2005 (French-American)in NYC, as well as the Chambers Kitchen in Minneapolis in 2007.
Starwood Hotels
Vongerichten and partner Phil Suarez have formed a new company with Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. and Catterton Partners, a consumer-focused private-equity firm which will own, operate, manage and license restaurants in Starwood properties as well as freestanding concepts not attached to the hotel giant's lodging outlets. The deal calls for seven Spice Markets and other concepts world wide. The total number of eating destinations could total 56 with this contract. The first to open will be Spice Markets at new W Hotels in both Atlanta and Istanbul.
Vancouver Restaurant
Vongerichten is opening a restaurant at the Hotel Shangri-La Vancouver, a luxury hotel that Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts will open in early 2009. “Market by Jean-Georges” is the first collaboration between Shangri-La and Mr. Vongerichten and is the famous chef's first involvement with Canadian or west coast dining.
Influence
New York Magazine wrote that in the past two decades, no single chef has had more influence on the way New Yorkers dine out—or on the way other chefs cook and other restaurants look. “He invented America’s answer to nouvelle cuisine,” says Mario Batali, who knows something about starting culinary trends. “When I first came to New York, his book Simple Cuisine was the holy grail for young chefs, and JoJo was the hottest ticket in town.”
Controversy
In September, 2008, Vongerichten agreed to settle a lawsuit for $1.7 million filed by staff who claimed tips from several of his restaurants had been redirected to managers.
Books
Simple to Spectacular (co-authored with Mark Bittman) (2000), ISBN 0-7679-0360-9
Jean-Georges: Cooking At Home with a Four-Star Chef (co-authored with Mark Bittman) (1998), ISBN 0-7679-0155-X
Simple Cuisine: The Easy, New Approach to Four-Star Cooking (1991), ISBN 0-13-195059-2
Asian Flavorings of Jean-Georges (October, 2007)
Recipe