Jeremiah Tower facts for kids
Tower in 2015
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| Born | 1942 (age 82–83) Stamford, Connecticut, U.S. |
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| Cooking style | California cuisine |
| Education | Harvard University Harvard Graduate School of Design |
| Spouse |
Curtis Cox (m. 2020)
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Previous restaurant(s)
* Chez Panisse, Berkeley
* Balboa Cafe, San Francisco * Santa Fe Bar and Grill, Berkeley * Stars Restaurant, various locations * J.T.'s Bistro, San Francisco * Speedo 690 Restaurant * Tavern on the Green, New York City * Peak Cafe, Hong Kong |
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Jeremiah Tower (born in 1942) is a famous American celebrity chef. He is known for helping to create a cooking style called California cuisine. Other chefs like Alice Waters and Wolfgang Puck also helped develop this style. Even though he loved food from a young age, Jeremiah Tower did not go to a special cooking school before he became a chef.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Jeremiah Tower was born in 1942 in Stamford, Connecticut. His father managed a company that made film sound equipment. Tower went to schools in Australia, England, and Connecticut.
He earned a bachelor's degree from Harvard University. Later, he got a master's degree in architecture from the Harvard Graduate School of Design. After finishing his studies, Tower wanted to design buildings, especially underwater ones in Hawaii. He was very interested in finding the lost city of Atlantis. However, when his grandfather passed away, Tower needed to find a job to support himself.
Culinary Career
In 1972, Jeremiah Tower visited a restaurant called Chez Panisse in Berkeley, California. He was very impressed by a berry tart he ate there. This inspired him to apply for a job at the restaurant.
His cooking skills and bold ideas for French food led Alice Waters and her partners to hire him. Within a year, he became an equal partner. He was in charge of the kitchen, creating menus, and promoting the restaurant.
Leaving Chez Panisse
Tower left Chez Panisse in 1978. He had different ideas about how the restaurant should be run compared to Alice Waters and the other partners. For example, they did not agree with his idea to open a Panisse Cafe.
After leaving, he worked at the Ventana Inn in Big Sur. In 1980, he taught for a short time at the California Culinary Academy.
Opening Stars Restaurant
In 1981, Tower helped bring back the Balboa Cafe in San Francisco. Then, in 1982, he became the chef at Santa Fe Bar and Grill in Berkeley.
In 1984, Tower opened his own restaurant called Stars. He partnered with Cathe and Doyle Moon. Stars quickly became one of the most successful restaurants in the Bay Area. Tower opened other Stars locations in places like Oakville (Napa Valley), Palo Alto, Manila, and Singapore. Many future famous chefs worked at Stars, including Mario Batali and Dominique Crenn.
Later Ventures and Fame
In the 1990s, Tower owned a cafe in Hong Kong called the Peak Cafe. He also had other businesses in San Francisco. These included a more casual cafe, a fancy bistro, and a kitchenware shop.
As he became more famous, he allowed companies to use his name for their products. He even had a deal with Dewar's Scotch. In 1998, Tower sold part of his share in the Stars restaurants. The new owners closed Stars two years later.
After this, Tower lived in Manila for a year, then in New York City for four years. He also lived in Italy and Mexico. In 2014, he was hired as the head chef at Tavern on the Green in New York City. He left that job in April 2015 after six months.
Personal Life
Jeremiah Tower married his husband, Curtis Cox, in 2020.
Film and TV Appearances
In 2016, a documentary film about Jeremiah Tower was released. It was called Jeremiah Tower: The Last Magnificent. Lydia Tenaglia directed the film, and Anthony Bourdain helped produce it. The film was shown at the Tribeca Film Festival. It was later broadcast on CNN in 2017.
In 2017, Tower appeared on the TV show Top Chef. He also appeared on the BBC TV show Road to Mexico, hosted by Rick Stein. He was a special guest at a food festival in Spokane, Washington. He also served as a judge at a cooking awards event in Mexico City.
Awards and Honors
Jeremiah Tower has received several important awards for his cooking.
- In 1985, Cook’s Magazine named him in "Who's Who in American Cooking."
- His first cookbook, New American Classics, won a James Beard Foundation Award in 1986. This award was for "Best American Regional Cookbook."
- He won the James Beard Foundation Award for "Best Chef in California" in 1993.
- He won the "Outstanding Chef of the Year" award in 1996.
In 2017, Jeremiah Tower became a Founding Patron of the Oxford Cultural Collective. This group focuses on education in hospitality and food.
Images for kids
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Tower in 2015
