In 2016, lauded fine-dining restaurant Grace has been showered with praise, earning three Michelin Stars for the third consecutive year and a James Beard award for owner and head chef Curtis Duffy. The restaurant, which Duffy founded after stints in the kitchens of Charlie Trotter's and Alinea, serves immaculately constructed dishes that attract food lovers from around the globe, commanding $235 for a multi-course tasting menu. Needless to say, scoring a reservation is no simple feat.
Just before Thanksgiving, Duffy capped off the year with yet another honor, this one bestowed by the Escoffier School of Culinary Arts, an international organization that trains chefs in the techniques of Auguste Escoffier, a French chef who helped standardize modern cooking methods. The organization hosted a dinner at Grace to induct Duffy into its Disciples d’Escoffier society, which recognizes culinary professionals who are experts within their field. Duffy joins a small list of Chicago inductees that includes Signature Room Executive Chef Cardel Reid and Quartino Executive Chef John Coletta.
Duffy wasn't the only individual recognized at the event—he was joined by one of his mentors, his former home economics teacher Ruth Snider, and Koval Distillery owners Robert Birnecker and Sonat Birnecker Hart (the first U.S. distillers to join the organization). Each Disciples d’Escoffier inductee received a sash and was "knighted" with a giant wooden spoon—would you expect anything less from an organization that celebrates the culinary arts?
In addition to recognizing Duffy, the Escoffier School of Culinary Arts will also establish a $25,000 Curtis Duffy scholarship program. With any luck, the scholarship bearing Duffy's name could help train the next chef to get tapped on the shoulders with a giant wooden spoon in a fancy Randolph Street restaurant.
Photograph: Glenn McManus
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