A chef and baker who has accumulated accolades, MICHELIN Stars, and successes for her various restaurants and bakeries over nearly 50 years of professional activity: this is Nancy Silverton in Los Angeles.
Born in 1954 in California, Nancy Silverton developed a passion for cooking from a young age and subsequently trained at Le Cordon Bleu and the Ecole Lenotre Culinary Institute. She made her professional debut in 1979 and has since become an established and award-winning chef and baker, entrepreneur, author, speaker, and television personality.
Nancy Silverton was the head pastry chef at the now-closed “Campanile” restaurant before embarking on entrepreneurial ventures, the first being the “La Brea” bakery, one of the largest fresh bread productions in America, of which she is co-founder and manager.
In 1995, the first of many recognitions, Nancy was listed among the year's top 10 pastry chefs by Chocolatier magazine, then was named food artisan by Bon Appetit Best of Food & Entertaining; she was included among the 50 New Taste Makers by Nation's Restaurant News and was awarded the title of Best New Chefs by Food & Wine magazine.
The chef also owns two restaurants with chef Mario Batali, “Osteria Mozza,” with One MICHELIN Star and One Green MICHELIN Star, and “Pizzeria Mozza,” which has received many accolades for its artisanal pizzas and whose format has also been exported to Newport Beach and Singapore.
Among the responsibilities of owner, chef, and baker, Nancy has written eight cookbooks, some nominated for various awards like the Julia Child Cookbook Awards and the James Beard Best Cookbook of the Year.
In 2001, she won the James Beard Outstanding Restaurant Award, two years later the RCA Pioneer Award, in 2004 the International Star Diamond Award for outstanding hospitality; then, the following year, she received the WCR Golden Bowl Award and in 2006 the Los Angeles Times included her in the West 100: the most influential people in Southern California.
In 2011 she opened a high-end burger restaurant, “Short Order” at the Original Farmers Market in Los Angeles, but she did not stop there; in the same city, she also started “Mozza2Go” and “Chi Spacca,” with One Green MICHELIN Star.
Furthermore, Nancy has appeared on popular television programs such as Top Chef on Netflix and Today and has been a guest judge on the show Hell's Kitchen and Rachael vs. Guy: Celebrity Cook-Off.
Cover Photo credits: @Food&Wine