Russell Moore

My name is Chef Russell Moore and I was born and raised in Chicago, Illinois. I started in the culinary arts back in 1981 when I was 14 years old. First, I put my name on the four-year waiting list at Washburne Culinary Institute (so when I graduated high school I could get right in) and went to work nights, cooking banquets on a harbor cruise ship. I must admit that the passion started seven years earlier when I tried to cook one bowl of popcorn in my mom's kitchen, which turned into 40 buckets of fully cooked chaos, and I vowed then that I would get this whole cooking thing right.

So at the age of 13, I made my mom get me a subscription to Gourmet magazine and continued to practice until I was called to culinary school in 1986. Since then I have cut my teeth with the French at hotel Sofitel, in Paris and held several executive chef positions including starting a few of my own businesses, one of which made its way on to the pages of a world famous magazine's hot 100 list.

Currently I'm happily married (for 15 years to the girl of my youth) and the proud father of one (Chef Russell Jr.) who has a dog named Harley, all of whom are more than happy to try any of dad's newest kitchen creations! To date, I represent Slick's Lounge where I moved from executive chef to corporate culinary consultant in order to spend more time with the family and to grow future business opportunities while, keeping an eye peeled for the next challenge to advance my career, and further my culinary knowledge.