The 5 world-famous chefs and their stories
“There is no sincerer love than the love of food."This is a saying which is more than true. Now in a new revolutionized world it’s not only the women who must know their way around the kitchen.Men are equally ruling the roost now.And India too has taken the hint.Now it’s more of the men who cook,experiment and enhance the goodness of cooking.Let us get some inspiration from some of the top chefs of the world and their stories.
1.Akis Petretzikis
Akis Petretzikis was brought up in Thessaloniki and at the age of 16 he started working in his family business.At the age of 18 years he went to Athens to become an accountant.But arriving there he felt his true calling was to become a chef.So to familiarize and explore this field more he got his admission and took classes at Le Monde(School of culinary arts).
When he graduated he had dual degrees.One he was trained as a chef and second as an accountant.He decided to become a chef and worked at many restaurants in Greece and then went to England to learn the art of international cooking.
Presently Akis Petretzikis has his own cookery show at the MEGA channel.He is a food consultant for 5 star hotels across the globe.He is also the author of cookbooks like,’Menu by Akis Petretzikis’ and ‘You should try this’.He has also started a new project called,’Akis Petretzikis Kitchen Lab which is a culinary lab where experiments are done and fusion recipes are created.He got his fame by winning the competition Masterchef Greece.
2.Jamie Oliver
Jamie has cooking in his blood.He was born in Essex and his parents ran their own pub and restaurant called ‘The Cricketers’ where Jamie used to be a helping hand anytime he was needed.Jamie was fascinated by the art of cooking and making sumptuous dishes so much that he quit school at the age of 16 and joined Westminster Catering College.
He wrote his first cookbook in 2010 titled, Jamie's 30 minute meals which sold a million copies. Since then he has written more than 20 cookbooks.He earned fame because of his first TV show-The Naked Chef and selling of million copies of his book,Jamie’s 30-minute meals.
3.Vikas Khanna
He was born in Amritsar and used to develop his own recipes from a young age.Vikas always mentions that his grandmother was his first guide who led him into the world of culinary arts.He graduated from the Welcomgroup Graduate school of hotel administration,Manipal. He also pursued culinary courses at the ‘Culinary Institute of America,Cornell university and New York university.He opened his first venture called Lawrence Garden Banquets at the age of 17.In 2009 he opened his restaurant ‘Junoon In Manhattan for which he earned a Michelin star in 2012,2013 and 2014.
Vikas Khanna has hosted many editions of the popular show called Master chef India.He has also featured on tv shows like Kitchen Nightmares,Hell’s Kitchen,Throwdown with Bobby Flay, the Martha Stewart Show and Masterchef Australia.He has authored 19 cookbooks.
His cooking skills have impressed all but he is also admired around the world for his good looks.In a poll conducted by the Eater Blog,he was voted to be the New York’s Hottest Chef in 2011 and 2012.The People Magazine in 2011 named him the ‘Sexiest Man Alive’ and the ‘Hottest Chef of America’.In 2012 he was awarded to be ‘GQ India Man Of The Year.’He has also prepared two meals for US President Barack Obama.The first one was a satvik meal and the other one was a Himalayan cuisine. He earned fame for his restaurant Junoon for which he got a Michelin Star and for being the host of Masterchef India.
4.Stuart O’Keeffe
Stuart O’Keeffe was born in Ireland and became passionate about cooking by watching his mother prepare the meals. He used to skip doing school homework to help his mom and aunt prepare pies and pastries.He says that at the age of 7 he became the right handy sous chef of his family kitchen.He uses fresh and locally available ingredients to make his dishes and says his cooking style is influenced by his mother.
He is a trained chef now. He pursued BA in Culinary Arts from Dublin Institute of Technology. After his graduation he travelled through Europe and then finally moved to France where he learned traditional and high-end French cuisine.Stuart specializes in New American and Continental cuisine.
He is the Brand Ambassador of Tupperware and has featured in TV shows like Stuart’s Kitchen and has also made appearances in Marie,The Home and Family Show,CBS’s The Talk as well as Republic of Telly.He can also be seen in Asiana Airlines commercials.
He earned fame because of his TV show-Private chefs of Beverly Hills on Food Network.
5.Alain Allegretti
Alain Allegretti was born in Nice and grew up on a farm in France.He started cooking early in life with his grandmother. He later went to a culinary school and started working professionally at the age of 20.In 2005 he became the Executive Chef of Atelier,a restaurant of New York’s Ritz-Carlton Hotel.He opened his first restaurant in New York City in 2008 by the name Allegretti.
He is the executive chef and owner of the famous ‘La Promenade de Anglais’ in Chelsea.This restaurant gathered lot of critical acclaim and earned a two star review from the New York Times.Pete Walls called him,’The king of French Cuisine’.He was also voted as the ‘hottest chef in New York’ by Eater’s in 2008.He earned fame because of critical acclaim for all his restaurants.