Tom Colicchio
Encyclopedia
Thomas Patrick "Tom" Colicchio (born August 15, 1962) is an American celebrity chef
. He co-founded the Gramercy Tavern in New York City
, and formerly served as a co-owner and as the executive chef. He is also the founder of Craft and Colicchio & Sons restaurants. Colicchio is the recipient of five James Beard
Foundation Medals for cooking accomplishments.
He has been the head judge on every season of the Bravo reality TV show Top Chef
. Colicchio has been a featured chef on Great Chefs
Television.
. He is Italian-American on both parents' sides. He has been married to filmmaker Lori Silverbush since 2001. He has three sons, Dante (1993) from a previous relationship, and Luka Bodhi (2009) and Mateo Lev (2011) with current wife Lori.
In July 1994, Colicchio and his partner Danny Meyer
opened the Gramercy Tavern in the Gramercy Park
neighborhood of Manhattan. It was voted Most Popular Restaurant in New York City by the Zagat Survey
in 2003 and 2005. He sold his interest in 2006 and is no longer affiliated with the restaurant.
In spring 2001, he opened the first Craft restaurant one block south of Gramercy Tavern. A year later, he opened the first Craftsteak at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. In 2003, he began the first 'wichcraft, his sandwich shop. In 2010, he opened Colicchio & Sons, and also Riverpark.
Shortly after the September 11 attacks, Colicchio joined volunteers serving food to rescue workers at Ground Zero.
On January 19, 2009, Colicchio performed the Heimlich maneuver
on award-winning cookbook author Joan Nathan
, who was choking on a piece of chicken. Both were at a U.S. presidential inaugural event in Washington D.C.
Colicchio served as the consulting producer on Bravo's Top Chef
spin-off series entitled Top Chef Masters
.
Colicchio won the 2010 Outstanding Chef award from the James Beard Foundation
. He also won an Emmy award in 2010 for Outstanding Reality-Competition Programming as an executive producer of Top Chef, on which he also appears.
Colicchio appeared in the fifth episode of the first season of HBO's Treme as himself along with fellow chefs Eric Ripert, David Chang and Wylie Dufresne. He made another cameo in Season 2 alongside Ripert.
In 2011, he did a cameo in the Season 23 premiere episode of The Simpsons
, The Falcon and the D'ohman
, The Smurfs (film)
.
He has written three cookbooks.
Craftbar
Colicchio & Sons (formerly Craftsteak)
'wichcraft
Craftsteak
Voysey's (consultant
)
Riverpark
Celebrity chef
A celebrity chef is a kitchen chef who has become famous and well known. Today celebrity chefs often become celebrities by presenting cookery advice and demonstrations via mass media, especially television. Historically, celebrity chefs have included Antoine Carême and Martino da Como.-External...
. He co-founded the Gramercy Tavern in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, and formerly served as a co-owner and as the executive chef. He is also the founder of Craft and Colicchio & Sons restaurants. Colicchio is the recipient of five James Beard
James Beard
James Andrew Beard was an American chef and food writer. The central figure in the story of the establishment of a gourmet American food identity, Beard was an eccentric personality who brought French cooking to the American middle and upper classes in the 1950s...
Foundation Medals for cooking accomplishments.
He has been the head judge on every season of the Bravo reality TV show Top Chef
Top Chef
Top Chef is an American reality competition show that airs on the cable television network Bravo, in which chefs compete against each other in culinary challenges. They are judged by a panel of professional chefs and other notables from the food and wine industry with one or more contestants...
. Colicchio has been a featured chef on Great Chefs
Great Chefs
Great Chefs is a franchise of cooking shows and cookbooks that began with thirteen half hour programs produced for the American Public Broadcasting Service entitled Great Chefs of New Orleans...
Television.
Life and career
Colicchio was born in Elizabeth, New JerseyElizabeth, New Jersey
Elizabeth is a city in Union County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city had a total population of 124,969, retaining its ranking as New Jersey's fourth largest city with an increase of 4,401 residents from its 2000 Census population of 120,568...
. He is Italian-American on both parents' sides. He has been married to filmmaker Lori Silverbush since 2001. He has three sons, Dante (1993) from a previous relationship, and Luka Bodhi (2009) and Mateo Lev (2011) with current wife Lori.
In July 1994, Colicchio and his partner Danny Meyer
Danny Meyer
Daniel "Danny" Meyer is a New York City restaurateur and the CEO of Union Square Hospitality Group .-Personal life:...
opened the Gramercy Tavern in the Gramercy Park
Gramercy Park
Gramercy Park is a small, fenced-in private park in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, United States. The park is at the core of both the neighborhood referred to as either Gramercy or Gramercy Park and the Gramercy Park Historic District...
neighborhood of Manhattan. It was voted Most Popular Restaurant in New York City by the Zagat Survey
Zagat Survey
Zagat Survey was established by Tim and Nina Zagat in 1979 as a way to collect and correlate the ratings of restaurants by diners. For their first guide, covering New York City, the Zagats surveyed their friends. As of 2005, the Zagat Survey included 70 cities, with reviews based on the input of...
in 2003 and 2005. He sold his interest in 2006 and is no longer affiliated with the restaurant.
In spring 2001, he opened the first Craft restaurant one block south of Gramercy Tavern. A year later, he opened the first Craftsteak at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. In 2003, he began the first 'wichcraft, his sandwich shop. In 2010, he opened Colicchio & Sons, and also Riverpark.
Shortly after the September 11 attacks, Colicchio joined volunteers serving food to rescue workers at Ground Zero.
On January 19, 2009, Colicchio performed the Heimlich maneuver
Choking
Choking is the mechanical obstruction of the flow of air from the environment into the lungs. Choking prevents breathing, and can be partial or complete, with partial choking allowing some, although inadequate, flow of air into the lungs. Prolonged or complete choking results in asphyxia which...
on award-winning cookbook author Joan Nathan
Joan Nathan
Joan Nathan is an award-winning American author of cookbooks. She has also produced TV documentaries on the subject of Jewish cuisine.-Biography:...
, who was choking on a piece of chicken. Both were at a U.S. presidential inaugural event in Washington D.C.
Colicchio served as the consulting producer on Bravo's Top Chef
Top Chef
Top Chef is an American reality competition show that airs on the cable television network Bravo, in which chefs compete against each other in culinary challenges. They are judged by a panel of professional chefs and other notables from the food and wine industry with one or more contestants...
spin-off series entitled 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...
.
Colicchio won the 2010 Outstanding Chef award from the James Beard Foundation
James Beard Foundation
The James Beard Foundation is a New York-based national professional non-profit organization named in honor of James Beard that serves to promote the culinary arts by honoring chefs, wine professionals, journalists, and cookbook authors at annual award ceremonies and providing scholarships and...
. He also won an Emmy award in 2010 for Outstanding Reality-Competition Programming as an executive producer of Top Chef, on which he also appears.
Colicchio appeared in the fifth episode of the first season of HBO's Treme as himself along with fellow chefs Eric Ripert, David Chang and Wylie Dufresne. He made another cameo in Season 2 alongside Ripert.
In 2011, he did a cameo in the Season 23 premiere episode of The Simpsons
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
, The Falcon and the D'ohman
The Falcon and the D'ohman
"The Falcon and the D'ohman" is the season premiere of the twenty-third season of the animated sitcom The Simpsons. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on September 25, 2011. In the episode, the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant hires a new security guard named Wayne and Homer...
, The Smurfs (film)
The Smurfs (film)
The Smurfs is a 2011 American 3D family film based on The Smurfs comic book series created by Peyo and the 1980s animated TV series it spawned. It was directed by Raja Gosnell and stars Neil Patrick Harris, Hank Azaria, Jayma Mays, and Sofía Vergara. It is the first CGI/live-action hybrid film to...
.
He has written three cookbooks.
Restaurants
Craft- New York City
- Los AngelesLos ÁngelesLos Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
- Dallas
Craftbar
- New York City
- Los Angeles
Colicchio & Sons (formerly Craftsteak)
- New York City
'wichcraft
- New York City
- Las VegasLas Vegas metropolitan areaThe Las Vegas Valley is the heart of the Las Vegas-Paradise, NV MSA also known as the Las Vegas–Paradise–Henderson MSA which includes all of Clark County, Nevada, and is a metropolitan area in the southern part of the U.S. state of Nevada. The Valley is defined by the Las Vegas Valley landform, a ...
- San Francisco
Craftsteak
- Ledyard, ConnecticutLedyard, ConnecticutAs of the census of 2000, there were 14,687 people, 5,286 households, and 4,101 families residing in the town. The population density was 385.1 people per square mile . There were 5,486 housing units at an average density of 143.8 per square mile...
- Las Vegas
Voysey's (consultant
Consultant
A consultant is a professional who provides professional or expert advice in a particular area such as management, accountancy, the environment, entertainment, technology, law , human resources, marketing, emergency management, food production, medicine, finance, life management, economics, public...
)
- Kiawah Island, South CarolinaKiawah Island, South CarolinaKiawah is a sea island, or barrier island, on the Atlantic coast of the United States. Located south of Charleston in Charleston County, South Carolina, it is operated today largely as a beach and golf resort — the Kiawah Island Golf Resort — with spacious villas, beaches, large and acclaimed golf...
Riverpark
- New York
Books
- Think Like a Chef
- Craft of Cooking: Notes and Recipes from a Restaurant Kitchen
- 'wichcraft: Craft a sandwich into a meal—and a meal into a sandwich
- Top Chef: The Cookbook
Eat Drink or Die
On August 20, 2008, Colicchio partnered with Or Die Networks' eatdrinkordie.com, a site dedicated to hosting entertaining, instructional food videos made by experts and users alike.External links
- Great Chefs biography
- Interview with Tom Colicchio at ICE - April 2004
- Tom Colicchio's Eatdrinkordie.com Profile
- Gramercy Tavern official web site
- 'wichcraft official web site
- Craft Restaurant official web site
- Top Chef bio and blog
- US Beard Awards