Tom

My name is Tom Colicchio. I was born in Elizabeth, New Jersey, and spent my childhood immersed in food, cooking with my mother and grandmother. It was my father, however, who suggested that I make a career of it. I taught myself to cook with the help of Jacques Pepin's legendary illustrated manuals on French cooking, La Technique and La Methode. When I was seventeen, I made my kitchen debut in my hometown of Elizabeth at Evelyn's Seafood Restaurant.I then went on to cook in a few New York restaurants such as The Quilted Giraffe, Gotham Bar & Grill, Rakel, and Mondrian. During my tenure as executive chef of Mondrian, Food & Wine Magazine selected me as one of the top ten "Best New Chefs" in the United States and the New York Times awarded our restaurant three stars. In July of 1994, Myself, along with my partner Danny Meyer, opened Gramercy Tavern in Manhattan's Gramercy Park neighborhood. We loved creating dishes characterized by bold flavors and unusual harmonies, and came up with some fantastic dishes.One block south of Gramercy Tavern, in March 2001, We opened Craft. Soon thereafter I published my first cookbook, "Think Like a Chef", published by Clarkson-Potter. After opening Craft and Craftbar in New York City, we opened Craftsteak at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas in July 2002. In spring 2003, 'wichcraft opened... a sandwich shop rooted in the same food and hospitality philosophies as Craft. 'wichcraft now has six New York City locations, one in Las Vegas and most recently, a location in San Francisco.My second cookbook, Craft of Cooking, (Clarkson Potter/Publishers), released in October 2003, will soon be followed by a sandwich book inspired by 'wichcraft. In 2006, Craftsteak New York and Craft Dallas opened and work has begun on Craft Los Angeles is slated to open in Spring 2007. Its an exciting time for us and were looking forward to it!