Executive Chef, eighty one
Widely acknowledged for bringing out the best in seafood, Chef Edward Brown served as executive chef of The Sea Grill for almost 14 years. Esquire magazine called The Sea Grill “one of the best restaurants in the world” and Brown “perhaps the most impressive talent in his field”. Zagat Survey consistently rated The Sea Grill as one of the top seafood restaurants in New York. His collection of stars – fourteen in all – from The New York Times (Marie Michelle, Tropica, Judson Grill, and Sea Grill) is also testament to his ability to excite both diners and critics with his passion, integrity and commitment.
While Brown’s philosophy has always been to serve the freshest seafood possible, his culinary approach largely emphasizes a vibrant perfectionistic new American style, recollecting Japanese and French techniques with an eye for presentation, dimension, and color. Brown’s enthusiasm for impeccable ingredients (beyond seafood) translates into an artful use of the world’s most flavorful varieties of vegetables and artisanal items, sourcing and serving on the advisory board of such organizations as the Culinary Vegetable Institute based in Ohio.
After graduating from the Culinary Institute of America (CIA) in 1983, Brown joined New York’s Le Parker Meridian as sous chef at its three-star Maurice Restaurant working with the likes of Chef Christian Delouvrier and Chef/Maitre Cuisinier Alain Senderens. Two years later, he traveled with Senderens to Paris to work at the famous Michelin three-star Lucas Carton as Chef de Partie Tournant. It was during this stay in France that he was introduced to the cuisines of the world and the variety of cooking techniques which are so evident in the combination's, flavors and simplicity he embraces in his cooking style today.
In 1990, Edward G. Brown joined the venerable Restaurant Associates to open Tropica, the organization’s first project in the Met Life building complex, eventually overseeing the culinary programs at all of RA’s restaurants in the building. After a brief stopover at Judson Grill, Brown returned to the Restaurant Associates family in 1994 to serve as Executive Chef of The Sea Grill. Fourteen years later, Ed Brown is embarking on a journey to follow his longtime dream of owning his own restaurant.
When eighty one opens in the mid-fall of 2007 on New York City’s upper west side, Ed Brown’s repertoire will be expanded to include a menu of modern American dishes – not all seafood – where only the finest ingredients and most exacting techniques are used. His extraordinary talent will be given a stage on which to shine and his commitment to the culinary landscape of New York City will continue.
Regularly seen on the TODAY show, Brown continues to garner rave reviews from Crain's New York Business, The New York Times, Gourmet, New York Magazine, and others. He is also actively involved in numerous charities including the annual chefs’ tribute for Citymeals-on-Wheels, Volunteers of America’s annual fundraising event A New York Christmas, and City Harvest’s Bid Against Hunger, where he serves on the hunger-relief organization’s Food Council.
In addition to the numerous culinary excerpts penned in cookbooks, Brown authored The Modern Seafood Cook, a comprehensive cookbook describing how to buy, handle and prepare seafood and fish throughout the year. He also participated as a contributing author for the new Joy of Cooking, updating its fish and shellfish section and wrote the forward for celebrated Chef Pierre Franey’s last edition of 60 Minute Gourmet.
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