MANILA, Philippines - Who is the well-known Japanese chef specializing in French cuisine and was named “King of Iron Chefs” after winning the show’s grand finale involving all active Iron Chefs?
He was born on April 2, 1942 in Kagoshima Prefecture in Japan. Wanting to make sure he would never be hungry, he set out to be a chef and started his career at Shin Osaka Hotel. He soon grew tired of the feudal style of apprenticeship and decided to travel alone to Perth, Australia, at the age of 19, where he practiced his skills at Hotel Oriental.
He then traveled back to Japan and worked for three years at Ginza Shiki, where he studied under Fujio Shio, his predecessor as Japanese French chef. Working all around Japan, he was able to master refined city styles of cooking and more relaxed country or home-cooking styles. With work at Coco Palms of Aoyama and John Kanaya of Roppongi, he gained even more prestige.
He opened his own restaurant, La Rochelle, originally in Aoyama but now in Shibuya, whose name was derived from the French city where he spent some time as an apprentice. He is a member of the Club des Trente, an organization of French chefs in Japan.
He first appeared on television in 1994 as the second and last Iron Chef-French in the Japanese version, and continued his appearance for over nine seasons.
His television trademark is a red French chef’s costume, and rising into Kitchen Stadium with a pear in his hand. He is often described as the “Delacroix of French cuisine” because of his presentation of dishes.
Reaction to his appointment as Iron Chef was initially met with skepticism, as many believed there was no possibility that any French dish would take less than an hour to prepare. However, as the show became more popular, chefs, judges, and fans became more supportive.
In an effort to learn from others, he would often taste food his opponents had prepared, or grab assistants and ask them questions after the battle was over.
In the New York Special of the show, he gave a presentation to the Culinary Institute of America on the preparation of salmon, assisted by Iron Chef-Italian Masahiko Kobe. He also appeared on Iron Chef America: Battle of the Masters, where he lost a trout battle to Bobby Flay (during which he created trout-flavored ice cream) and teamed up with Mario Batali in the seafood battle. His win/lose/tie record on Iron Chef is 70-15-1.
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Answer: E. Stewart Williams
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