Abe Conlon

Abraham Conlon (born 1980 or 1981) is an American chef and a native of Lowell, Massachusetts, of Portuguese heritage.[1][2]  Conlon is the winner of the 2018 James Beard Foundation Award for Best Chef: Great Lakes.[3][4][5]

Education

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Conlon was born in 1980 or 1981.[6] At the early age of 15, Conlon showed interest in cooking and gained knowledge of classic sensibilities.[7] Conlon graduated from Greater Lowell Technical High School in 1999.[6][8]

He studied classical training at the Culinary Institute of America with mentors Franc Giovanini and Jon Matheison.[9][2][10][11]

He studied fusion techniques under Norman Van Aken.[12][13]

Career

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Conlon ran Chez Asian Bistro, a restaurant with a blend of Southeast Asian styles with local ingredients, in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.[9]

He became the youngest chef to win the AAA 4 Diamond Award for Augustine’s at Fredericksburg Square in Virginia.[14][9]

Conlon and his business partner, Adrienne Lo, founded X-marx, an underground supper club in Chicago that served seven to 12 courses, three to four times per week, without repeating dishes and no repetition of a dish to serve.[13][15][16]

In November 2012, Conlon and Lo opened their own fine-dining restaurant, Fat Rice, named after the home-style arroz gordo in Logan Square, Chicago.[17] Conlon was the head chef of Fat Rice.[18] After interviewing previous workers of Fat Rice The New York Times reported in 2020 that the employees largely portrayed Conlon as "an extreme example of a restaurant-business archetype: a tantrum-prone chef who rules by fear and bullying".[19] He published a letter of regret, saying, "I have hurt and let down many people. I hear the criticism of my character and behavior. As process and reflect, I'm realizing who I am, who I've become, and how I need to change. I am taking this time to learn and to grow so that I may be better for the people I have damaged."[20]

Awards

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Published Book

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  • The Adventures of Fat Rice: Recipes from the Chicago Restaurant Inspired by Macau (Ten Speed Press)[25][26][27]

References

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  1. ^ "Chef Abe Conlon Gives Us The Skinny On Fat Rice". www.standardhotels.com. 18 September 2018. Retrieved 2022-11-28.
  2. ^ a b McSweeney, Margaret (2018-12-17). "Abe Conlon: Best Chef of the Great Lakes". Kitchen Chat. Retrieved 2022-11-28.
  3. ^ "Abe Conlon of Fat Rice only Chicago chef to win a 2018 James Beard Award". Chicago Tribune. 8 May 2018. Retrieved 2022-11-28.
  4. ^ "The 2018 James Beard Award Winners | James Beard Foundation". www.jamesbeard.org. Retrieved 2022-11-28.
  5. ^ "Chicago's Abraham Conlon emerges victorious at the 2018 James Beard Awards". Chicago Sun-Times. 2018-05-08. Retrieved 2022-11-28.
  6. ^ a b Sobey, Rick (2013-10-14). "Lowell native is cookin' -- in Chicago". The Sun. Archived from the original on 2023-05-06. Retrieved 2023-05-06.
  7. ^ "From Pandemic to Protests: How Food Businesses Are Responding". Bon Appétit. 2020-03-26. Retrieved 2022-11-28.
  8. ^ Buote, Brenda J. (2014-06-07). "Noted chef Abraham Conlon returns to Tyngsborough". The Boston Globe. Archived from the original on 2023-05-06. Retrieved 2023-05-06.
  9. ^ a b c Dean, Jacob (2018-04-23). "Chef Abraham Conlon, Fat Rice, and the Search for Flavor". The Cook's Cook. Retrieved 2022-11-28.
  10. ^ "Abraham Conlon". Food & Wine. Retrieved 2022-12-05.
  11. ^ "Two local eateries celebrate their modest beginnings with big James Beard wins". Chicago Sun-Times. 2018-05-08. Retrieved 2022-12-05.
  12. ^ Lambrecht, Catherine (2017-01-21). "What Makes Fat Rice Tick? Culinary Tell-All Behind Logan Square Eatery". Culinary Historians of Chicago. Retrieved 2022-11-28.
  13. ^ a b Cusack, Rachel (2018-10-01). "Introducing October's James Beard Award Winning Chefs: Abe Conlon & Adrienne Lo". Corporate Essentials. Retrieved 2022-11-28.
  14. ^ "Bio". Food & Wine. Retrieved 2022-11-28.
  15. ^ Sula, Mike (2020-06-16). "A culinary confession". Chicago Reader. Retrieved 2022-11-28.
  16. ^ "Abe Conlon Blurs the Lines Between Food and Drink". Plate. Retrieved 2022-12-05.
  17. ^ Mai, Jeffy (2017-03-02). "How Fat Rice's Arroz Gordo Is a Chicago-Only Melting Pot of Cuisines". Eater Chicago. Retrieved 2022-11-28.
  18. ^ Anderson, Brett (2020-04-28). "Fat Rice, an Acclaimed Chicago Restaurant, Shifts to Meal Kits". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-11-28.
  19. ^ Anderson, Brett (2020-06-16). "A Top Chicago Restaurant Messaged Its Virtue. Then Workers Spoke Up. Since Fat Rice proclaimed its support for justice, former employees have come forward with complaints that its chef created a hostile work environment". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2023-05-06. Retrieved 2023-05-06.
  20. ^ Moore, Evan F. (2020-06-08). "Abraham Conlon, Fat Rice co-owner, issues apology 'for those I have hurt,' amid bullying allegations". Chicago Sun-Times. Archived from the original on 2023-05-06. Retrieved 2023-05-06.
  21. ^ Olsen, Morgan. "Fat Rice chef Abraham Conlon honored with 2018 James Beard Best Chef Great Lakes award". Time Out Chicago. Retrieved 2022-11-28.
  22. ^ "Abraham Conlon". San Diego Bay Wine & Food Festival®. Retrieved 2022-11-28.
  23. ^ "Abraham Conlon". Chicago Gourmet.
  24. ^ "A guide to eating 2017 James Beard Award-winning food in Chicago". Chicago Tribune. 24 June 2017. Retrieved 2022-11-28.
  25. ^ Conlon, Abraham; Lo, Adrienne (2016-10-25). The Adventures of Fat Rice: Recipes from the Chicago Restaurant Inspired by Macau [A Cookbook]. Clarkson Potter/Ten Speed. ISBN 978-1-60774-896-0.
  26. ^ Canavan, Hillary Dixler (2015-10-01). "How Chicago Hotspot Fat Rice Finds Its Future in Culinary History". Eater. Retrieved 2022-11-28.
  27. ^ "Talks at Google | The Adventures of Fat Rice". gtalks-gs.appspot.com. Retrieved 2022-11-28.[permanent dead link]
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