Grant Achatz – Blue Kitchen

Award-winning Chef Achatz’s new restaurant Next will take on a different cuisine and a different era every three months. This adventurous undertaking is the subject of my latest USA Character Approved Blog post.

Grant Achatz has set himself one tough act to follow. On Monday, his acclaimed molecular gastronomy restaurant Alinea moved from seventh place to sixth on the S. Pellegrino “World’s 50 Best Restaurants” list. Gourmet magazine had named the Chicago restaurant the best in America in 2006, the second year it was open. In 2008, the James Beard Foundation called Achatz the “Best Chef in the United States.”

Small wonder that USA Network chose Achatz as their 2011 USA Character Approved Honoree for food. And even smaller wonder that his highly anticipated new restaurant Next is almost completely booked through the end of June, as far out as they’re currently booking. But what exactly is Next? Continue reading “What’s “Next” for Grant Achatz? Paris 1906 (for now, that is)” →

The 2011 Character Approved Awards will recognize 12 cultural trailblazers for innovation and contributions in their fields in a one-hour documentary that premieres Tuesday, March 8, at 11/10c. Grant Achatz will be honored for his groundbreaking molecular gastronomy.

In the space of a week last year, two different friends told me they’d just eaten the best meals of their lives. Both were speaking of dinner at Grant Achatz’s Chicago restaurant, Alinea. So it was no surprise that USA Network chose Achatz as a recipient of one of their Character Approved Awards.

Achatz is at the forefront of molecular gastronomy, a movement that is turning the kitchen into a lab, using scientific tools and techniques and changing the very idea of high-end dining. As USA Network’s Character Approved website reports, “With incredible imagination and whimsy, Grant Achatz re-envisions the way we experience food.” Continue reading “Chicago chef Grant Achatz honored at USA Network’s Character Approved Awards” →