1. Education and early career

2. Career
    Top Chef   Other television appearances  Restaurants 

3. Other activities

4. References

5. Works cited

6. External links

Richard Blais is an American chef, television personality, restaurateur and author. He appeared on the reality show cooking show Top Chef,^[1] and is known for his take on classic American cuisine. Blais was the runner-up for the fourth season of Top Chef and returned several seasons later to win Top Chef: All-Stars.

Education and early career

Blais was born in Uniondale, New York.{{sfn|Blais|2017|p=13}} He was adopted by his stepfather in the second grade.{{sfn|Blais|Colicchio|2013|p=10}} Blais' first cooking job was in a McDonald's on Long Island, where he learned the basics of working in a kitchen.{{sfn|Blais|Colicchio|2013|p=10}} After moving on to a couple upscale restaurants while in college,{{sfn|Blais|Colicchio|2013|p=12}} he received an AOS in culinary arts from The Culinary Institute of America.{{sfn|Blais|Colicchio|2013|p=12}} After graduation, he was invited to complete a fellowship in the fish kitchen.{{sfn|Blais|Colicchio|2013|p=12}} He has studied under chefs Thomas Keller at The French Laundry,{{sfn|Blais|2017|p=13}} Daniel Boulud, and Ferran Adrià.{{sfn|Blais|Colicchio|2013|p=12}} He also trained at restaurants Chez Panisse and elBulli.{{sfn|Blais|2017|p=13}}

Career

A native New Yorker, Blais relocated to Atlanta, Georgia in 2000 to run his own restaurant, called Fishbone.{{sfn|Blais|Colicchio|2013|p=13}} Initially, he was unimpressed with traditionally Southern ingredients, but found ways to elevate them in his own style.{{sfn|Blais|Colicchio|2013|p=13}} He founded Trail Blais, a creative culinary company that has consulted on, designed and operates some of Atlanta’s most popular eateries.

In July 2011, Blais signed a cookbook deal with Clarkson Potter, a division of Random House. On February 26, he released his debut cookbook, Try This at Home: Recipes From My Head to Your Plate, an effort to make a simplified approach to adventurous cooking and offers new flavor combinations for home cooks to reinvent classic dishes.{{sfn|Blais|Colicchio|2013|p=13}} Try This at Home was nominated for a James Beard Foundation Award 2014 in the category of Cookbook: General Cooking. Blais later opened Juniper & Ivy with Michael Rosen in San Diego, California, his first West Coast venture, where he showcases an innovative approach to California cuisine. He and Michael most recently opened Crack Shack, a fried chicken fine-casual concept, where the menu is built around chicken and eggs.^[1] Crack Shack has multiple locations in San Diego, Encinitas, Orange County and soon,{{when|date=June 2017}} Los Angeles.

On May 16, 2017, Blais released his second cookbook, So Good: 100 Recipes from My Kitchen to Yours, which features 100 elevated traditional recipes designed for the home cook.

Also in 2017, Blais began hosting a weekly podcast about the culinary industry called Starving For Attention. ^[2]

Top Chef

Blais appeared as a contestant on the fourth season of Bravo's Top Chef.^[3] In 2010, he competed in Top Chef: All-Stars and won the competition, earning the title of "Top Chef" by defeating Mike Isabella in the season finale, which aired on March 30, 2011. He was a recurring judge in seasons 12 and 13.

Other television appearances

Blais is a regular on the Food Network, with recurring appearances on Guy's Grocery Games as a judge,{{sfn|Blais|2017|p=13}} and has also hosted Food Network's Hungry Games, and Halloween Baking Championship. He competed in the second Cutthroat Kitchen: Superstar Sabotage tournament on November 4, 2015, winning his preliminary match and advancing to the finals; he has been a recurring judge on that series since season 12. He also has a recurring role as judge in the Masterchef and Masterchef Junior franchise. In 2015, Blais was the host of HLN's "Cook Your Ass Off,"{{sfn|Blais|2017|p=13}} a transformational culinary contest that focused on healthy cooking competition. In 2017 he became the host of "Man v. Master,"^[1]{{sfn|Blais|2017|p=13}} a culinary competition on the FYI Network. Richard has also appeared on various talk shows, including The TODAY Show, Good Morning America, The Rachael Ray Show, The Chew, Live! with Kelly and Michael, and Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. Blais had a cameo role in the 2016 feature film, Why Him?, starring James Franco and Bryan Cranston.^[1]

Restaurants

Currently, Blais runs:

• Juniper & Ivy – An American restaurant that opened in San Diego in March 3, 2014.^[4] At Juniper & Ivy, Blais offers refined, American cuisine with a "left coast edge."
• The Crack Shack – Blais partnered with chef Jon Sloan and Michael Rosen on this second San Diego-based restaurant, which opened in late 2015. The restaurant, "serves breakfast, lunch and dinner via an all-day menu that revolves around chicken and eggs, from fried to grilled and everything in-between".^[5] Crack Shack plans to expand to multiple locations throughout California including Orange County and Los Angeles.{{citation needed|date=August 2017}}
• FLIP Burger Boutique – Blais was formerly involved with and co-founder of burger-focused restaurant, FLIP Burger Boutique, with three locations in Atlanta, one in Birmingham, and a location in Nashville, Tennessee that has closed.^[6]

Other activities

In November 2011, Blais ran the ING New York City marathon for Alliance for a Healthier Generation.^[7] It was his first marathon, and he completed it in 4:31:54.^[8] He has since run four other New York City marathons. In November 2017, Blais ran the TCS New York City Marathon for Room to Read.^[9] He was nominated for a James Beard award for his first cookbook.

References

Works cited

• {{cite book| ref=harv |last1= Blais |first1=Richard |first2=Tom |last2=Colicchio|title=Try This at Home: Recipes from My Head to Your Plate|publisher= Potter/TenSpeed/Harmony|date=2013 |isbn=0307985288}}
• {{cite book| ref=harv |last=Blais |first=Richard |title=So Good: 100 Recipes from My Kitchen to Yours|publisher=Houghton Mifflin Harcourt|date=2017 |isbn=0544663098}}

External links

• {{Official website|http://www.richardblais.net}}
• Bravo TV biography

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