Rick Tramonto

Executive Chef Rick Tramonto, recognized in 1994 as one of Food & Wine’s Top Ten Best New Chefs and in 2002 as Best Chef: Midwest Region by the James Beard Foundation, has garnered international attention and a host of prestigious awards for his work at Trio, Brasserie T, and his renowned four-star, Relais-Gourmand restaurant Tru in Chicago.

A Rochester, New York native, Tramonto was disinterested during his teen years in traditional academics, choosing instead to enroll in a vocational tech program where he learned the skills of cooking. He then went to work full-time at Wendy’s Old Fashioned Hamburgers to help out his family and left after two years to cook at The Scotch & Sirloin, which led to his first real culinary experience at the Strathallen Hotel where he met culinary partner Gale Gand. Young and ambitious, Tramonto moved to New York in 1985 where he worked at the legendary Tavern on the Green. From there he joined Chef Alfred Potale as line cook at Gotham Bar & Grill and was part of the brigade awarded three stars by The New York Times.

Tramonto was brought to Chicago by Richard Melman in 1987 to work at his popular Lettuce Entertain You restaurants. In 1989, Tramonto received a call from Bob Payton, who asked him to transform the kitchen and cuisine at the award-winning country-house hotel, Stapleford Park, in Leicestershire, outside London. Tramonto and Gand accepted the opportunity to live and work in England, France, and Spain. Their proudest moment was receiving the coveted Michelin Guide’s Red “M” after only a year at Stapleford, a feat not accomplished by an American in five years, after which they reopened the Criterion Brasserie in Picadilly Circus, the restaurant made famous in a Sherlock Holmes novel. Tramonto worked with some of the world’s greatest chefs including Chef Pierre Gagnaire, Chef Anton Mosimann, chef Michel Guerard, and Chef Raymond Blanc. He returned to Chicago in 1993 after his three-year experience abroad.

Tramonto has a history of television work, including “Oprah”, “Today”, “CBS This Morning”, and the TV Food Network. His sixth cookbook, “Fantastico!”, is a tour of Italy one small plate at a time and will be released in autumn 2007. In 2006 he founded Cenitare Restaurants with Gand, a restaurant management and development company which opened four new concepts The Westin Chicago North Shore, including Tramonto’s Steak & Seafood, Osteria di Tramonto, and RT Lounge. For more information on Tramonto, visit www.cenitare.com, www.trurestaurant.com, and www.cheftramonto.com