Eggscellent Chef Ambassadors

Keira Moritz, Pacci Ristorante and AltoRex Rooftop Lounge
Although Keira Moritz was originally headed for a career in criminal justice, her passion for cooking led her on a different path. A Georgia native, Moritz first attended Valdosta State University before fully realizing her talents in the kitchen while attending an event where the chef failed to show up. Moritz filled in to feed 150 guests and knew she had stumbled upon a career. She went on to attain her culinary degree from Johnson and Wales University in Charleston, South Carolina, and then her foodservice management degree from the university's campus in Denver, Colorado.

After finishing culinary school, Moritz remained in Denver to work alongside Chef Elise Wiggins at Panzano where her admiration of Italian cuisine grew. During Moritz's time as executive sous chef at Panzano, the restaurant received the 2005 Wine Spectator Award of Excellence and was named one of the top five restaurants by the Rocky Mountain News.

Prior to her arrival at Pacci, Moritz spent two years as executive chef for Puccini Pinetti, one of San Francisco's top Italian restaurants where she made extensive changes and brought new ideas to the menu. Moritz utilized fresh and local ingredients to create exciting Italian dishes.

At Pacci Ristorante, Moritz's passion lies in supporting local farms and artisan producers and providing the best meats and seafood and seasonal produce at the peak of their quality. Her menu features seasonal, Northern Italian cuisine alongside traditional steakhouse classics. She is also known for innovative menuing and promotion of eggs on her breakfast menu.

Moritz currently resides in Midtown with her border collie, Magnolia, and enjoys staying active in her free time by running marathons and kayaking. She also enjoys growing her own herbs and tomatoes.

Ouita Michel, Holly Hill Inn and the Woodford Reserve
Chef Ouita and her husband, Chris, own and operate the historic and critically acclaimed Holly Hill Inn in Midway, Ky., in the heart of America's Bluegrass horse country. Ouita's cuisine is community farm-based, featuring imaginative dishes that pay tribute to the richness of traditional Kentucky cooking as well as a continental and modern style for elegant entertaining. Ouita is also quite a fan of eggs and she includes them in a number of her innovative menu items.

The Michels own two other restaurants and a tavern in the Bluegrass, Wallace Station Deli and Bakery just outside Midway, and Cleveland's and Park Street Bourbon Bar in Versailles.

In May 2009, Brown-Forman Corp. named Chef Ouita Michel as chef-in-residence for its Woodford Reserve Distillery outside Versailles, Ky. As Woodford Reserve's chef-in-residence, Ouita is the spokeswoman for the distillery's culinary endeavors.

Ouita has won acclaim in radio, television and print, including The New York Times, which wrote of the Holly Hill Inn as "a gem of a restaurant." She also has appeared in publications such as Bon Appetit, Food & Wine, Wine Spectator, Southern Living and on Martha Stewart Living Radio. Ouita was nominated for a James Beard Foundation Award in 2009 for the second year in a row, as Best Chef in the Southeast, competing against chefs in major metropolitan areas. Southern Living featured her in its May 2009 issue's Southern Chef Salute. Ouita was chosen to present an all-Kentucky feast at the James Beard House in New York City in 2004.

Active in her community as well, Ouita is a member of Slow Food Bluegrass and is a founder of Francisco's Farm, an annual fine art and craft fair that draws thousands to the beautiful Midway College campus each June. She, Chris and their daughter, Willa, live in a 200-year-old log cabin adjacent to Holly Hill Inn. They have been proud keepers of the inn's longstanding tradition as a hospitable gathering place in the nine years they have owned it.

Jodi Hortze, aka Miss Griddle, The Griddle Café
Jodi is a self-trained chef who is the founder and CEO of one of the top breakfast restaurants in Los Angeles in the Hollywood area, The Griddle Café. Griddle Café serves only breakfast and lunch and is packed from the moment they open for business everyday.

Growing up, Jodi was not given sweets very often, and out of curiosity and desire, Jodi learned to create a wide variety of desserts as a child. In fact, while she was a teenager, she worked at Winchell's Donuts and Carvel Ice Cream where she became assistant manager. At Carvel, she refined her creative talents, as she was known to bring in all kinds of different ingredients to mix with ice cream.

Finally, she had the opportunity to open The Griddle Café. Specialties of the restaurant are indulgent pancakes and creative egg dishes like the Baked Potato Omelette, the Omelette Pomodoro, the Cobb Omelette, Kicking and Screaming Breakfast Tacos, Poached y Papas Benedict, Red Velvet Pancakes, Scotch on the Rocks Pancakes, Peanut Bubba Pancakes and Saturday Morning Fever. As Metromix Los Angeles said, "Breakfast doesn't get any more decadent than the Griddle Café."

Jodi is responsible, not just for the menu, but for everything that is The Griddle Café. She has developed the website and the Facebook Page, and she has The Griddle Café on Twitter. Her success is seen, not just from the celebrities that frequent The Griddle Café, but from the long waits virtually every day.

The Griddle Café has been featured in or on Bon Appetit, The Los Angeles Times, NY Times Magazine, Inc. 5000, Japanese Vogue, Al Roker, ABC, local TV, the Food Network and Rachel Ray. Rachel Ray couldn't have put it better when she said about The Griddle Café, "It is larger than life."

Michael Henry Moorman, m.HENRY, Chicago, IL
Michael has been actively involved in the Food and Beverage industry for over 25 years. Coming from a family that has long been in the restaurant business, working with food has only come naturally. At 17 he was selling Italian Ices on the streets of Boston. By 21, he started a small natural juice and snack food company in Amherst, Mass. From there, he was involved in a large-scale farming operation in Tennessee before taking over a small tofu shop and turning it into the fifth largest soy dairy in the country. He developed the first national line of soy based ice cream for the natural foods market with annual sales of over $5 million and then merged with a chocolate company. That led Michael to return to school at Cornell University's School of Hotel and Restaurant Management.

Upon leaving, Michael was hired as a Senior Associate by Cini-Little International, the U.S.'s largest foodservice design/business consulting firm. He coordinated projects including developing a foodservice master plan for the expansion of Chicago's McCormick Place. Other projects included the start-up of an upscale fast food concept and taking over as President of New Line Desserts where he developed products for Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, and Dominos Pizza.

In 1995, Michael relocated to Chicago and joined HeartWise Express, serving as Managing Partner for the healthy alternative fast food concept until 2002. In 2003 Michael founded and opened m.henry, an upscale breakfast, lunch and weekend brunch cafe that has been rated as one of the top breakfast and lunch spots in the city. Over the past six years, Michael has appeared on the Food Network three times cooking with Chef and fellow Cornelian Ming Tsai on “East Meets West,” has shown Al Roker how to prepare m.henry's famous Blackberry Blisscakes, and was featured on Rachel Ray's “Tasty Travels.”

Courtney Parks, Open City and the Diner, Washington, DC
Courtney grew up in South Jersey and studied computer science at Rutgers, seemingly a long way from the restaurant world. But, sparked by working at a number of restaurants during college, he knew what he wanted to do. To pursue his desire to be a chef, he moved to Philadelphia and learned the profession from the ground up in places like Zanzibar Blue, The Astral Plane, London Grill, and Philadelphia Fish & Company.

In 1995, Courtney moved to Washington D. C. where he went to work as a chef at Dean and Deluca of Georgetown. His love of gourmet food flourished in that environment, but what he really wanted was to use his passion for gourmet foods and become part of a neighborhood institution; a place that everyone knew and felt connected to. In 2000, he got his chance with the opening of The Diner in Washington, DC. The Diner was the spark that transformed the entire Adams Morgan neighborhood into a vibrant restaurant and retail corridor.

After a stint in Chicago at Fox and Obel, Courtney returned to Washington to help launch Open City, the sister restaurant of The Diner, where the goal was to redefine the boundaries of what a “diner” can be. With fine wines and spirits, the finest coffee available anywhere, and an eclectic, ever-changing menu that maximizes seasonal products; Courtney is changing people's minds daily.

His goal as chef of Open City, the Diner, and Tryst Coffehouse is to surprise, excite, and challenge diners with interesting variations and reinterpretations of the classics. That is well on its way based on the number of times in the last several years these restaurants have been mentioned on a number of “Best Breakfasts” lists.

J.J. Kingery, Wild Eggs, Louisville, KY
“I just want to make people happy.” It is a simple philosophy for cooking but one that has served Wild Eggs executive chef J.J. Kingery well. Under the tutelage of his mother and grandmother, Kingery began experimenting in the kitchen at tender age of six and has been putting smiles on faces since then. Today, his use of fresh and top-quality ingredients in classic and adventurous dishes keeps his guests lined up almost daily.

Kingery officially entered the restaurant business in high school, testing his culinary chops at various local restaurants and learning the inner workings of a professional kitchen. He moved to Louisville, KY. to obtain a culinary degree at Sullivan University.

After graduating, he worked in several in different restaurants such as MGM's Biloxi Mississippi Casino and Fourth Street Pub before accepting an executive chef position at Bluegrass Brewing Company (BBC). After pursuing different culinary challenges, he landed at Napa River Grill where he met J. D. Rothberg, owner of the upscale casual restaurant inspired by “Wine Country.” Rothberg had decided to begin an upscale breakfast and lunch concept serving fresh and creative cuisine. He knew that Kingery would be the ideal fit for executive chef at Wild Eggs.

When Kingery is not dreaming up the “grits of the day” or cooking up any other Wild Eggs specialty, he enjoys gardening, playing poker, and spending time with his daughter, Stella.

Wild Eggs: Winner of Best Brunch in Louisville…Trip Advisor

Seth Bixby-Daugherty, Real Food Initiatives, Minneapolis, MN
Chef Seth Bixby-Daugherty has been a lifelong student of food. Raised in upstate New York, Daugherty's mother was a pastry chef and frequently sold baked products to local restaurants. Not surprisingly, Daugherty pursued a culinary degree after high school, taking cooking classes at Cobleskill Technical College and subsequently enrolling in the Culinary Institute of America (CIA).

While attending the CIA, Daugherty enhanced his education with an internship at the Four Seasons Hotel in Washington D.C. After graduation, Daugherty returned to the Four Seasons Hotel to complete a three-year apprenticeship with Chef William Douglas McNeill. His relationship with the Four Seasons earned him a position in New York City as an opening sous-chef for the Four Seasons Hotel, located on 57th and Madison.

During his time in New York, Daugherty also had the opportunity to work at LeBernardin, gaining experience in every station in the kitchen, including pastry. After leaving New York, Daugherty moved to Colorado to open Paul's Creekside Grill in the Hotel at the Inn at Silvercreek and then to Minneapolis where he worked as chef of D'Amico Cucina for three years. From January 2003 to December 2006 he was the opening and executive chef of Graves601hotel in Minneapolis.

In December of 2006 Seth and his wife Karen started Real Food Initiatives to help deal with the multidimensional problem that is America's relationship with food. Daugherty was recently recognized by Food and Wine magazine as one of America's Best New Chefs for 2005. Daugherty is very active participating in events for both Share our Strength and The James Beard Foundation.

Cindy Pawlcyn, Mustard's Grill, Cindy's Back Street Kitchen and Go Fish, Napa Valley
Cindy Pawlcyn grew up in an accomplished culinary family, where fresh, seasonal ingredients were an integral part of every meal and suppertime was always family-time. She studied at Cordon Bleu and La Varenne in Paris, and worked in various restaurants in Chicago and Minneapolis before moving to California in 1980.

In 1983, Cindy opened her first restaurant, Mustard's Grill, in Napa Valley. Since then, Cindy has been involved in the creation of over a dozen new restaurants including Rio Grill, Fog City Diner, Bix, Roti, Buckeye Roadhouse and Tra Vigne.

You'll find eggs on each of Cindy's menus as appetizers, entrees and in baking. A pioneer in her field, Cindy is an inductee of Who's Who of Cooking in America, has been twice nominated for the James Beard Foundation award for Best Chef in California and is the recipient of the Robert Mondavi Award for Culinary Excellence and the Fine Beverage and Food Federation's Career Achievement Award. Her cookbook, “Mustards Grill Cookbook,” won a James Beard Award.

Tom Fleming, Central 214, Dallas
Chef Tom Fleming has achieved national recognition for his culinary accomplishments at some of the world's best restaurants. A proven leader in the kitchen, Fleming has graced the pages of Bon Appétit, Southern Living, Gourmet, Esquire and USA Today, and has earned the James Beard Foundation's award for “Best New Restaurant.”

As executive chef of Central 214, Fleming's hearty regional American menu evolves with the seasons to feature the freshest seafood, steaks, wild game, local produce and, of course, eggs. Fleming uses eggs not only at breakfast, where he serves one of the best in the city, but also for lunch and dinner.

Prior to joining Central 214, Fleming received his culinary education at Kendall College. He then worked under the tutelage of his mentor Chef/Proprietor Jean Joho at Everest in Chicago. He opened Brasserie JO for Joho, which later won the James Beard Foundation Award for “Best New Restaurant.” After moving to Dallas, he served as executive chef at Old Hickory Steakhouse at the Gaylord Texan Resort & Convention Center. Under his leadership the restaurant won a number of awards including: “Top 10 Best New Restaurants in 2004” - The Dallas Morning News; “Best Dessert, 2004” – Dallas Observer; “What's Hot: Dallas” - Nations Restaurant News. His restaurant, located in Kimpton's Hotel Palomar, is the place for the stars to eat when in Dallas.

Gabrielle Hamilton, Prune, NYC
Gabrielle Hamilton is the chef/owner of PRUNE which she opened in New York City's East Village in October 1999. PRUNE is a local neighborhood restaurant that has received national acclaim. Known for one of the most eclectic menus in the country, Prune has been recognized in all major press, both nationally and internationally, and is regularly cited in the top 100 lists of all major food magazines.

New York Magazine selected Prune as the top lunch in New York for 2007. They have described Gabrielle's cooking as “idiosyncratic, soulful, quirky and compelling.” She has one of the best brunches in the city, and was one of the first chefs to present egg dishes as true stars on her lunch and dinner menus.

Gabrielle has written for The New Yorker, The New York Times, Saveur magazine and Food & Wine and authored the 8-week Chef's Column in The New York Times. Her work has been anthologized in Best Food Writing 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2005. When Gourmet Magazine's Gourmet Institute wanted a chef to give a seminar on eggs to major food consumers, they chose Gabrielle. She is currently working on a collection of food essays to be published by Penguin Press in October 2007.