Stephen Starr

Not to be confused with Steven Starr.

Stephen Starr is a restaurateur and head of the Starr Restaurant Organization. His honors include "Restaurateur of the Year" accolades from both Bon Appétit and Zagat.[1][2] Travel + Leisure noted that "Starr creates complete environments with an artistic, almost cerebral approach".[3] USA Today identified him as "the 'It' guy of the city’s food scene", while Restaurant Hospitality reported his winning the annual Richard Melman Innovator of the Year award in 2013 and cited his popular restaurants in Philadelphia as "arguably the key reason for the city’s revitalized culinary scene".[4] The Harvard Observer recognized Starr "for making contributions of outstanding artistic significance to the field of restaurant hospitality over the whole of his career" [5]

Personal life

Starr grew up in Woodbury Heights, New Jersey, where he attended Gateway Regional High School.[6]

A lifelong devotee of music and pop culture, Starr began his career at the age of 21 with Grandmom Minnie’s, a converted diner serving food by day and comedy by night, in Philadelphia’s Old City. He next opened Starr’s, a cabaret that featured then-emerging acts such as Jerry Seinfeld and Pat Benatar, and later Ripley Music Hall, a venue that showcased acts like U2, The Eurythmics, Cyndi Lauper and Bruce Springsteen. He founded The Concert Company to bring large-scale stadium acts to Philadelphia, and was responsible for many memorable shows in the city, including Madonna, Lionel Ritchie and George Michael. His company was purchased by Electric Factory Concerts in 1990, giving Starr the opportunity to explore the hospitality industry full-time. Early on, he opened Shake, Burger and Roll, a kitschy American diner; The Bank, a trendy dance club; and Cafe Republic, a Russian-themed caviar and vodka bar.

Starr is the owner of several restaurants in Philadelphia, New York City, Fort Lauderdale, Miami and Atlantic City.[7] All of these restaurants are part of the Starr Restaurant Organization.[8]

Reality TV

Stephen was the guest judge on the Restaurant Wars episode of Top Chef: Season 5.[9]

Restaurants

South Florida

Philadelphia

New York City

- Clocktower at the New York EDITION Hotel (Opened 2015) in partnership with British Chef Jason Atherton

Atlantic City

Washington DC

Le Diplomate - opened April 2013, located at 14th & Q Streets, NW, in Logan Circle. Executive Chef Michael Abt.

Closed

References

  1. ↑ "Stephen Starr Restaurants". Visit Philadelphia®. The Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation. Retrieved 1 January 2015. Bon Appetit magazine named Starr 'Restaurateur of the Year' in October 2005.
  2. ↑ Fishman, Steve (26 Nov 2007). "Mr. Big Box". New York Magazine. New York Media LLC. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
  3. ↑ Maroukian, Francine (September 2003). "The Philadelphia Experiment". Travel + Leisure. Time Inc. p. 5. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
  4. ↑ "Starr, Melman compare steps to success". Restaurant Hospitality. Penton. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
  5. ↑ "Harvard Observer". Retrieved 1 January 2016.
  6. ↑ Tanaka, Wendy. "Mastermind behind high-concept eateries Since '95, Stephen Starr has built a restaurant empire.", The Philadelphia Inquirer, May 26, 2002. Accessed June 8, 2015. "He grew up in Woodbury Heights, the son of a television repairman. At Gateway Regional High School, he became known for promoting concerts - a fledgling business back in the late 1960s."
  7. ↑ Chef & Restaurant Database
  8. ↑ Starr Restaurants
  9. ↑ Archived December 18, 2008, at the Wayback Machine.
  10. 1 2 "50 Best Places to Eat Right Now" Philadelphia
  11. ↑ "New Chef at Barclay Prime" Philly Eater
  12. ↑ "Tops at Comfort Food Fest: Foie gras pierogi" Philly.com The Insider
  13. ↑ "Washington Square 86ed", Philadelphia Inquirer, Michael Klein
  14. ↑ Philadelphia Inquirer
  15. ↑ City Paper
  16. ↑ "Happiness Comes In Many Forms at Starr’s Route 6 and Vetri’s Alla Spina" Grub Street Philadelphia
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Thursday, April 21, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.