
WON BEST NEW CHEF AT Andrew Michael Italian Kitchen, Memphis, TN
WHY THEY’RE AMAZING Because they’re successfully putting their hometown of Memphis on the culinary map with daring nose-to-tail dinners and classic Italian recipes.
CULINARY SCHOOL Both: Johnson & Wales University (Charleston, SC), the Italian Institute for Advanced Culinary and Pastry Arts (Calabria, Italy)
BACKGROUND Both: Chez Philippe, Frank Grisanti’s (Memphis)
QUINTESSENTIAL DISH Corn tortellini with duck confit and chanterelle mushrooms
HOW THEY MET Ticer and Hudman went to rival Catholic high schools and bad-mouthed each other during sporting events.
HOW THEY GOT INTO THE FOOD BUSINESS They both came from large Italian-American families with strong food traditions, and decided to open a restaurant way back in 1994.
NO-MENU MONDAYS The chefs serve dinner without menus on the last Monday of each month; customers are welcome to guess the components of dishes, which aren’t shared until the meal is over.
RESTAURANTS
Andrew Michaels Italian Kitchen
712 W. Brookhaven Cir. Memphis, TN, United States
(901) 347-3569