S3:E7 Curtis Stone I Before Cooking Was Cool

"It's hard to hire female chefs. It's hard to hire African American chefs because there's just not as many people interested in it, which I'm like, yeah, and that's why we need to promote it, and that's why we need to give them opportunities far beyond what might seem reasonable because we want them to be the heroes so everyone else can look up to them.  Then we can actually bring real diversity into our kitchens."  Curtis Stone

Curtis Stone is one of the busiest chefs in the country between running his restaurants, appearing in countless television shows like Top Chef Masters (host), Netflix's Iron Chef, and Fox's Crime Scene Kitchen (judge), being a New York Times best-selling author of six cookbooks, and growing Kitchen Solutions, a collection of top-selling and best-reviewed cookware on HSN.

Obsessed with food from a young age, Curtis credits his mom and grandmother as his cooking and baking mentors. Following his passion, he began his culinary career as an apprentice at the Savoy Hotels five-star restaurant in his hometown of Melbourne, Australia. Three years later at the age of 21, he moved to Europe and sought out Britain's most celebrated chef (often referred to as the first celebrity chef), Marco Pierre White, to further his education and classical training for eight years. During that time, he was approached to co-host a television show, Surfing the Menu, traveling around Australia visiting food producers and cooking their produce. The show caught the eye of US producers that led to another television gig, Take Home Chef, and a subsequent move to the US settling in Los Angeles.

Today, Los Angeles-based Curtis' Michelin-starred restaurants include Maude in Beverly Hills named for his paternal grandmother serving refined, seasonally-focused Southern Californian cuisine, and Gwen Butcher Shop & Restaurant in Hollywood named for his maternal grandmother where he partnered with his brother, Luke Stone, to create an old-world, European-style butcher shop and an elegant restaurant using fire-based cooking techniques. 

Please join me, your host, Brad Johnson, and Curtis on Corner Table Talk as we learn more about what motivates him beyond creating beautiful and delicious food, sharing his philosophy and knowledge, and how he directs his actions to bring joy and create a positive community around him.

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HOW WE MOVE

Stay tuned to the end of the guest interview when international speaker, writer and diplomat Ambassador Shabazz (daughter of Malcolm X and Dr. Betty Shabazz) spends a few moments unpacking the discussion and highlights some of the interesting people, places and things that have her attention.  

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