Chef Rick Bayless, named Bravo’s Top Chef Master, is a Chicago-based, James Beard-award winning chef (Midwest Chef of the Year, National Chef of the Year and Humanitarian of the Year). His dining experiences include the casual Frontera Grill; the 4-star Topolobampo; and more recently, XOCO—a quick-serve, LEED-certified restaurant featuring house-ground chocolate and wood grilled tortas. These restaurants--combined with his acclaimed line of salsas, grilling sauces and organic chips--have his cuisine in demand coast to coast.
Nominated for a Daytime Emmy for Best Culinary Host, Chef Bayless produces a PBS series, One Plate at a Time, now in its eighth season. He’s also the author of eight award-winning cookbooks, including his latest, Frontera: Margaritas, Guacamoles & Snacks.
Additionally, Chef Bayless and his staff began the Frontera Farmer Foundation to attract support for small Midwestern farms. Each year, grants are given to local farmers for capital improvements to their family farms. In 2007 he was awarded the Humanitarian of the Year by the International Association of Culinary Professionals for his work with local farmers.
