Scott Conant

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Scott Conant
Born (1971-02-19) February 19, 1971 (age 53)
Waterbury, Connecticut, U.S.
EducationCulinary Institute of America
Spouse
Meltem Bozkurt Conant
​
​
(m. 2007)​
Children2
Culinary career
Cooking styleItalian
Current restaurant(s)
    • Cellaio Steak
    • Mora Italian
    • The Americano Scottsdale
    • The Americano Atlanta
Previous restaurant(s)
    • L'Impero, Manhattan (2002–2007)
    • Alto, Manhattan (2004–2007)
    • Fusco, Manhattan (2017–2018)
    • Scarpetta Restaurants (2008-2017)
Television show(s)
Award(s) won
    • James Beard Foundation's "Best New Restaurant" and "Best Restaurant Design" for L'Impero, 2003
    • Food & Wine Magazine's "Best New Chef," 2004
Websitescottconant.com

Scott Conant (born February 19, 1971) is an American celebrity chef, restaurateur, and cookbook author. Since 2009, Conant has been a judge on the reality cooking television series Chopped. He has published four cookbooks.

Early life[edit]

Conant was born in Waterbury, Connecticut. He is the son of Charles and Anne (née Varrone) Conant. He is of Italian descent on his mother's side. He began cooking at a young age, taking cooking classes at the local community college at age 11. At 15, he enrolled in W.F. Kaynor Technical High School for culinary arts, and then attended the Culinary Institute of America (CIA).[1][2]

Professional career[edit]

While at the Culinary Institute of America, Conant interned at the famous New York City restaurant San Domenico, an experience that had a decisive impact on the young chef.[1] After graduation, he spent a year in Munich, Germany, mastering the art of pastry at the Hotel Bayerischer Hof. He returned to the United States and San Domenico, working as a sous chef.[3] In 1995, Cesare Casella selected him to be chef de cuisine at Il Toscanaccio, an Upper East Side Tuscan-style restaurant. He later became executive chef at City Eatery, located on the Bowery in New York City.[4]

In September 2002, Conant opened L'Impero in Tudor City. Within weeks, the restaurant received a rave three-star review from The New York Times, which stated, "[Conant is] turning out dishes full of flavors that are joyous and highly refined. From the simplest preparations to the most complex, he is almost always in control and in tune."[5][6] Conant's signature pastas appeared on the cover of Food & Wine, and the magazine went on to name Conant one of America's "Best New Chefs" in 2004.[7]

L'Impero received top honors from the James Beard Foundation in 2003, including “Best New Restaurant” in the U.S. and “Outstanding Restaurant Design.”[8]

In October 2003, Conant was featured on the cover of Gourmet for its “Chefs Rock” issue, and in March 2004, Gourmet editor Ruth Reichl named L'Impero one of her favorite New York restaurants.[9] Following L'Impero, Conant went on to open Alto, a "sophisticated"[10] Italian restaurant in midtown Manhattan that offered his interpretation of Northern Italian cuisine.[11][12]

Conant left L'Impero and Alto in 2007 and, in 2008, opened Scarpetta in Chelsea, Manhattan. In July 2008, the restaurant garnered a positive three-star review from The New York Times[13] and New York Magazine.[14]

While no longer affiliated, Conant went on to build the Scarpetta brand to national acclaim with restaurants in New York City, Miami, Toronto, Los Angeles, and Las Vegas and published The Scarpetta Cookbook, inspired by dishes from the restaurant.[citation needed]

In July 2010, the reality food-competition television show 24 Hour Restaurant Battle premiered on the Food Network, starring Conant as the host and head judge. The television show pits two teams of two people against each other as they open up a restaurant from scratch in 24 hours.[15] The show ran two seasons.[16]

In 2021, Conant released his fourth cookbook, Peace, Love, and Pasta: Simple and Elegant Recipes from a Chef's Home Kitchen.[17]

Personal life[edit]

Conant has been married to his wife, Meltem (née Bozkurt) since 2007.[18] The couple have two daughters.

Filmography[edit]

Television
Year Title Role Notes
2006 After Hours with Daniel Boulud. Himself Episode: "Blue Ribbon Sushi."
2007, 2009 Top Chef Guest Judge 2 episodes
2009–present Chopped Self – Judge 220 episodes
2010 Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations Himself Episode: "Techniques Special"
2010–2011 24 Hour Restaurant Battle Host 5 episodes
2010–2019 The Best Thing I Ever Ate Himself 18 episodes
2011 Entourage Himself Episode: "The Big Bang"
Food(ography) Himself – Chef and owner of D.O.C.G Episode: "Las Vegas"
2011–2012 Food Network Star Himself / Judge 2 episodes
The Best Thing I Ever Made Himself 7 episodes
2012 Symon's Suppers Himself Episode: "Sunday Suppers"
Ali 70 from Las Vegas Himself TV special
Ten Dollar Dinners Himself Episode: "Scarpetta Swap Out"
Sandra's Restaurant Remakes Himself – Chef and owner of D.O.C.G. Episode: "Rich and Dreamy Dishes"
Iron Chef America Himself - Team Chopped Episode: "Thanksgiving Showdown: Thanksgiving Leftovers"
2012–2014 Rachael vs. Guy: Celebrity Cook-Off Himself / Judge 2 episodes
2014 Southern Fried Everything Himself - Cookbook Author Episode: "The Sounds of Sizzle"
Rewrapped Himself / Judge Episode: "Lay's It All on the Line"
2014–2016 Chopped After Hours Himself / Judge 11 episodes
2014–Present Beat Bobby Flay Himself / Mentor / Judge 38 episodes
2015 The Da Vinci List Himself Episode: "The Da Vinci List: Chefs"
Rachael Ray's Kids Cook-Off Himself / Judge Episode: "Grand Finale Cook Off"
Christmas at Bobby's Himself Christmas special
2015–2017 Chopped Junior Himself / Judge 9 episodes
2016 Burgers, Brew and 'Que Himself Episode: "Sweet and Savory"
Emeril's Florida Himself Episode: "Resort Restaurants"
All-Star Academy Himself – Guest professor Episode: "Snack Time"
Brunch at Bobby's Himself Episode: "Updated Manhattan"
2016–2017 Cooks vs. Cons Himself / Judge 4 episodes
2017–2019 Worst Cooks in America Himself / Chef / Judge 2 episodes
2018 Guy's Ranch Kitchen Himself Episode: "Healthy Comfort"
2019 Best Baker in America Host Episode: "Extra Icing: Classic French Pastries Reinvented"
2020 All-Star Best Thing I Ever Ate Himself 3 episodes
Chopped Sweets Host 6 episodes[19]
2021-Present Tournament of Champions Judge Episode: "The Bracket Begins"

Awards[edit]

  • Three Stars from The New York Times for "L'Impero" and "Scarpetta New York"
  • Four Stars from Miami Herald for "Scarpetta Miami"
  • "Best New Restaurant of 2003" from the James Beard Foundation for "L'Impero"
  • "Best New Chef" from Food & Wine Magazine in 2004
  • Winner of Season 3 of "Chopped All-Stars"

Cookbooks[edit]

  • Scott Conant's New Italian Cooking (2005), ISBN 0-7679-1682-4
  • Bold Italian (2008), ISBN 978-0-7679-1683-7
  • The Scarpetta Cookbook (2013), ISBN 978-1118508701
  • Peace, Love, & Pasta (2021), ISBN 1419747363

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b "Tomato King Scott Conant Resurrects Roman Regime". The New York Observer. August 12, 2008. Retrieved May 24, 2014.
  2. ^ Bruni, Frank (September 1, 2006). "Q&A: Scott Conant". The New York Times. Retrieved July 8, 2017.
  3. ^ Bryan Miller (July 22, 1988). "Restaurants". The New York Times. Retrieved May 23, 2014.
  4. ^ "City Eatery (NYC Restaurant) Review - New York City Restaurant Reviews - The New York Times". Events.nytimes.com. November 15, 2000. Retrieved May 23, 2014.
  5. ^ "L'Impero (NYC Restaurant) Review - New York City Restaurant Reviews - The New York Times". Events.nytimes.com. December 4, 2002. Retrieved May 23, 2014.
  6. ^ "OCTOBER 2006: Robert P. Bremner '62 on Chairman of the Fed The Tap Room Takes Off!" (PDF). www.yaleclubnyc.org. February 22, 2007. Retrieved May 23, 2014.
  7. ^ "Best New Chefs". Foodandwine.com. Retrieved May 23, 2014.
  8. ^ "The James Beard Foundation Events: December 2005". Jamesbeard.starchefs.com. Retrieved May 23, 2014.
  9. ^ "Ruth Reichl's 25 favorite New York City restaurants". A Full Belly. February 23, 2004. Retrieved May 23, 2014.
  10. ^ Platt, Adam. "Alto - New York Magazine Restaurant Review". Nymag.com. Retrieved May 23, 2014.
  11. ^ Freeman, Danyelle (June 13, 2007). "Q & A with Scott Conant". restaurantgirl.com. Retrieved May 24, 2014.
  12. ^ Ulster, Laurie (April 24, 2014). "The Many Sides of Scott Conant". The Chefs Connection. Retrieved May 24, 2014.
  13. ^ Bruni, Frank (July 30, 2008). "On Top of Spaghetti". The New York Times. Retrieved July 8, 2017.
  14. ^ Platt, Adam (July 14, 2008). "Scarpetta - New York Magazine Restaurant Review". Nymag.com. Retrieved May 23, 2014.
  15. ^ "24 Hour Restaurant Battle". 24hourrestaurantbattle.com. Archived from the original on July 19, 2011.
  16. ^ "The Arizona Republic". Retrieved November 7, 2022.
  17. ^ "Peace, Love, and Pasta: Home Cooking with Chef Scott Conant". Forbes. Retrieved November 7, 2022.
  18. ^ Shott, Chris (August 12, 2008). "Tomato King Scott Conant Resurrects Roman Regime". Observer.
  19. ^ Chopped Sweets, Food Network, retrieved May 12, 2020

External links[edit]

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