Nora Pouillon facts for kids

Nora Pouillon, born on October 26, 1943, is a famous chef, restaurant owner, and writer from Austria. She owned Restaurant Nora in Washington, D.C.. This restaurant was special because it was America's very first place to be certified as organic.

Nora Pouillon's Life Story

Early Years and Farm Life

Nora Pouillon was born in Vienna, Austria, during World War II. Her family was wealthy and owned a factory that made safety glass windows. They had to leave Vienna during the war. They found safety on a farm in the Tyrolean Alps that belonged to family friends.

Nora remembers this time well. She said, “There, the farmers grew all of their food. It taught me how difficult that truly is. They got up with the sun and worked until sunset. They had to prepare food for the winter months. There was no electricity and no running water." This experience taught her a lot about where food comes from.

After the war, Nora and her family went back to Vienna. She went to boarding school there. She still spent her summers at the farm with her grandmother.

Moving to America in the 1960s

In the 1960s, Nora moved to the United States with her husband, who was a French journalist. She noticed a big difference between how people got food in Europe and America. In Europe, people often bought fresh food from farms and outdoor markets. In America, after World War II, supermarkets with lots of packaged and frozen foods were common.

Nora said, “At the stores here it was amazing to see all the prepackaged and frozen food. Nothing depended on the season. Pepperidge Farm was like gourmet bread. The produce department was the smallest section in the store.”

As a mom with young children in the 1960s and 1970s, Nora cooked for her family every day. This was also when "food cooperatives" started to become popular. These co-ops offered different, organic, and whole food choices instead of just regular grocery stores.

Soon, Nora started several small businesses from her home in D.C.’s Adams Morgan neighborhood. She taught cooking classes and offered a casual catering service.

Nora's Cooking Career

Opening Her First Restaurant

Nora's cooking career changed a lot in the mid-1970s. One of her cooking students asked if she wanted to open the first restaurant inside the old Tabard Inn. She became known for serving local tomatoes and homemade mayonnaise. Soon, she started planning to open her own restaurant.

Restaurant Nora Opens

In 1979, Restaurant Nora opened its doors. It was located on the corner of Florida Avenue and 21st in Washington, D.C.’s DuPont Circle area. Famous journalist Sally Quinn and her husband, Washington Post editor Ben Bradlee, were early supporters and helped Nora financially.

Sally Quinn gave Nora some advice: “Don’t mention anything about being healthy and natural. That sounds so unappetizing. That sounds like hippie food.” But Nora didn't listen to this advice.

Because Bradlee and Quinn supported it early on, Restaurant Nora became very popular. By the early 1990s, it was a favorite spot for important people in D.C., like media members and politicians. President Bill Clinton even held his first party after becoming president at the restaurant.

Many presidents and first ladies ate at Nora's. Jimmy Carter was the first president to visit. Hillary Clinton loved the restaurant. Barack Obama and Michelle Obama also dined there, as did Nancy Reagan. When asked about her famous guests, Nora said, “Neither of the Bush presidents ever set foot in Nora’s, but Laura Bush came, along with her two daughters,” Pouillon announced proudly. “Good food, it seems, is also bipartisan.”

Restaurant Nora closed in June 2017 when Nora Pouillon retired.

America's First Certified Organic Restaurant

Nora wanted her restaurant to be certified organic. She found out that there wasn't a way for restaurants to get this certification yet. So, she decided to help create the rules herself.

She worked for two years with Oregon Tilth. This group helps and supports organic food and farming. The Oregon Tilth Certified Organic Program was started in 1982. It helps make sure farms follow organic rules.

The new rules said that 95 percent of the food used by a certified organic restaurant must come from farms that are certified organic by the USDA. Nora explained, “This meant obtaining proof of organic certification from all our suppliers.” She followed all the rules. In 1999, Restaurant Nora became the first certified organic restaurant in the United States.

It can be expensive and take a lot of time for restaurants to prove that 95 percent of their suppliers are organic. Nora told Organic Connections Magazine, “People don’t always understand how complicated and time consuming it is. Almost everything has to be organic down to the spices and coffee. It’s a lot of work to find certified organic farmers and track down certification papers from 35-plus purveyors every year. This process has to be done each year because the certificates have to be renewed each year.”

Other Restaurants: City Café and Asia Nora

In 1986, Nora Pouillon opened another restaurant called City Café. It was on M Street in West End, Washington, D.C.. City Café was a casual American restaurant that served lunch and dinner.

In 1994, she changed the restaurant's style to Asian food and renamed it Asia Nora. It offered organic fusion cuisine, which mixes different cooking styles. Asia Nora was very popular, but Nora closed it in 2007.

Working for Good Causes

Nora Pouillon has also been very active in helping good causes. In 1993, she joined other famous chefs like Rick Bayless and Alice Waters. They started Chefs Collaborative, a group that works for sustainable food practices. This means growing and preparing food in ways that are good for the planet and people.

Nora is also a member of Les Dames d'Escoffier. This is a group of professional women who work in the food, wine, and hotel industries. She is also part of Women Chefs and Restaurateurs, an organization for women chefs and restaurant owners.

Nora helped start the FreshFarm farmers' market in Dupont Circle in 1997. She was on the board as FreshFarm grew to have more than ten markets in the city.

She is on the board of directors for several groups that protect the environment. These include the Ocean Foundation, the Amazon Conservation Team, the Earth Day Network, and the DC Environmental Film Festival. From 1998 to 2000, Nora spoke for the "Give Swordfish a Break" campaign. This campaign was for NRDC/SeaWeb and helped protect swordfish.

In 2005, Nora and her business partners William Cole, Thomas, and Steven Damato started Blue Circle Foods. This company sells seafood that is caught or raised in a way that is good for the environment. They focus on knowing where the food comes from, how animals are treated, food safety, and quality. Blue Circle provides fresh and frozen seafood to chefs, stores, and distributors.

Awards and Honors

Nora Pouillon has received many awards for her work:

• 1996: U.S.A. Chef of the Year, American Tasting Institute.
• 1997: Chef of the Year, International Association of Culinary Professionals Award of Excellence.
• 2009: Genesis Award, Women Chefs & Restaurateurs.
• 2010: StarChefs Innovator Award, for her Contribution to American Cuisine.
• 2011: Pioneers Table, Chefs Collaborative.
• 2017: Women and Green Economy (WAGE®) Award, Earth Day Network.
• 2017: Lifetime Achievement Award, James Beard Foundation.
• 2018: Goldenes Verdienstzeichen, a special award from Austria called the Decoration of Merit in Gold for Services to the Republic of Austria.

Personal Life

Nora Pouillon was married once to a French journalist. They had two sons. That marriage ended in divorce. Nora also has two children with her business partner, Steven Damato.