Thomas McNaughton facts for kids
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| Born | October 9, 1983 Tabernacle Township, New Jersey, United States |
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| Cooking style | California cuisine |
| Education | Culinary Institute of America |
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Current restaurant(s)
"flour+water" (San Francisco, California); "flour+water pizzeria" (San Francisco, California); "penny roma" (San Francisco, California); "flour + water pasta shop" (San Francisco, California)
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Thomas McNaughton, born on October 9, 1983, is a famous American chef. He is also a restaurateur, meaning he owns and manages restaurants. Thomas has even written cookbooks.
He is a co-founder of the Flour + Water Hospitality Group. This group runs several popular restaurants in San Francisco, California. These include Flour + Water, Penny Roma, Flour + Water Pasta Shop, and Flour + Water Pizzeria.
Thomas loves working with local farmers. For over 15 years, he has built strong connections with food producers in the Bay Area. He is especially dedicated to Foodwise, an organization that supports local food. These relationships help him create fresh, seasonal menus for his restaurants.
Thomas has received many awards for his cooking. The James Beard Foundation nominated him three times for the Rising Star Chef of the Year Award. This was in 2010, 2011, and 2013. In 2011, Forbes magazine named him one of the 30 most influential people under 30 in food. Food & Wine magazine also featured him as an "American Icon" in 2012. That same year, they called him one of the 10 "Empire Builders."
Contents
Thomas McNaughton's Early Life and Career
Thomas McNaughton grew up in Tabernacle Township, New Jersey. His father, Noble, owned a plant nursery. His mother, Dorothy, owned a furniture store. Thomas was the youngest of four children.
Discovering a Passion for Cooking
During his teenage summers, Thomas worked at the Medford Lakes Country Club. He started as a dishwasher. Soon, he moved up to become a cook. This is where he found his love for restaurants and cooking. The busy and exciting kitchen atmosphere fascinated him. By age 17, he knew that cooking was what he wanted to do.
Culinary Training and Experience
In 2001, Thomas began studying at the Culinary Institute of America. This famous cooking school is in Hyde Park, New York. In 2002, he moved to the Bay Area. He started working with Chef Roland Passot at a restaurant called La Folie. There, he learned the basics of French cooking. He also got his first look at the San Francisco restaurant scene.
Thomas returned to the Culinary Institute of America in 2002. After graduating in 2003, he moved to San Francisco for good. He became a sous chef at two respected restaurants: Gary Danko and Quince. A sous chef is the second-in-command in a kitchen.
Travels and Italian Cooking
Besides working in San Francisco, Thomas traveled around Europe. He worked and trained at famous restaurants. These included Michel Rostang in France and Tantrise in Germany. He also worked at Sassege in Italy. During these trips, he fell in love with Italian cooking. He learned many traditional Italian techniques.
He then trained at Bruno e Franco in Bologna, Italy. There, he became an expert in curing meats and making pasta. These skills are still very important in his restaurants today.
Thomas McNaughton's Restaurants
Flour + Water Restaurant
After his time in Bologna, Thomas looked for new chances in San Francisco. One chance was to open a new Italian restaurant. He partnered with David White and David Steele. Thomas agreed to join while still in Italy. They planned the restaurant over the phone.
The restaurant, called Flour + Water, opened in May 2009. Thomas says the idea was to combine Italian cooking methods with fresh ingredients from Northern California. The partners expected a quiet opening. But Flour + Water was a huge success from its very first day.
The James Beard Foundation nominated Flour + Water for the Best New Restaurant Award in 2010. In 2011, GQ Magazine named it one of the 10 best restaurants of the year. Since it opened, the restaurant has won many awards. It has been praised in local and national magazines. These include 7x7 (magazine), The San Francisco Chronicle, The Washington Post, The New York Times, Food and Wine, and Travel + Leisure.
Penny Roma Restaurant
After Flour + Water became popular, Thomas and his partners opened Central Kitchen. This was in May 2012. It was located near Flour + Water. Central Kitchen served new Californian food. It focused on local and sustainable ingredients.
Central Kitchen offered a changing menu of fancy food in a relaxed setting. This allowed Thomas to show off his fine dining skills. He used the same focus on local ingredients as he did at Flour + Water. Central Kitchen was praised by both critics and the public. In 2013, GQ Magazine named it one of the 12 most outstanding restaurants of the year. The restaurant was mentioned in many publications. These included Conde Nast Traveler, The San Francisco Chronicle, Zagat, and SF Weekly.
Central Kitchen closed in March 2020. It briefly reopened as Central Kitchen Wine Bar. Then, Penny Roma opened in October 2021.
Flour + Water Pasta Shop
The Flour + Water Pasta Shop is a great place for lunch. It is also a bottle shop and a place where pasta is made. The team makes fresh filled and extruded pastas here every day. They also make sauces and more.
You can get sandwiches and hot pasta dishes until 3:30 PM daily. You can eat them in the courtyard shared with Penny Roma. At 5:30 PM each night, the shop becomes part of the Penny Roma dining room. It has counter seating. This lets you watch the team make pasta by hand while you eat.
Awards and Recognition
Thomas McNaughton and his restaurants have won many awards:
- Best New Restaurant nominee (Flour + Water), James Beard Foundation, 2010
- San Francisco's Best Pizza, Sunset Magazine, 2010
- Rising Star Chef of the Year nominee, James Beard Foundation, 2011
- 10 Best New Restaurants in America (Flour + Water), GQ, 2011
- 30 under 30 Most Influential Personalities in the Food and Beverage World, Forbes, 2011
- Rising Star Chef of the Year nominee, James Beard Foundation, 2012
- Best Italian Restaurants in the US (Flour + Water), Travel+Leisure, 2012
- Empire Builder, Food&Wine Magazine, 2012
- Rising Star Chef of the Year nominee, James Beard Foundation, 2013
- Top 100 Restaurants in San Francisco (Flour + Water, Central Kitchen), San Francisco Chronicle, 2013
- Best New Restaurant in San Francisco (Central Kitchen), Conde Nast Traveler, 2013
- 12 Most Outstanding Restaurants (Central Kitchen), GQ, 2013
