Amanda Freitag

Amanda Freitag (born May 11, 1972) is an American celebrity chef, and cookbook author. She is known for her frequent guest on Food Network television programs and work as a judge on the television cooking competitions. She is based in New York City.

Amanda Freitag
Born	(1972-05-11) May 11, 1972 (age 50) New Jersey, U.S.
Education	The Culinary Institute of America
Culinary career
Current restaurant(s) * Rise & Thyme, Dallas (2020–present)
Previous restaurant(s) * Vong New York, New York City (1989–1994), * Verbena, New York City (1994–?), * L'Arpège, Paris (1999), * Cesca Enoteca & Trattoria, New York City (2003–?), * The Harrison, New York City (?–2010), * Empire Diner, New York City (2014–2015)
Television show(s) * Chopped (2009–present), * Iron Chef America: The Series (2009, 2012), * Unique Eats (2010–2013), * American Diner Revival (2015–2016)

Early life and education

Freitag was raised in Cedar Grove, New Jersey.^[1] She attended Cedar Grove High School, then known as Memorial High School, where her home economics teacher, Joan Levine, suggested that Freitag might be interested in attending the Culinary Institute of America (CIA).^[2] Freitag attended CIA at the Hyde Park location, graduating in 1989.^[3][4]

Restaurant career

Following graduation in 1989, Freitag took a position at Vong New York working under chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten. In 1994, she left Vong to cook at Verbena, under chef Diane Forley. Freitag has stated that her time at Verbena was meaningful and she built important relationships,^[5] and where she first learned to focus on using local, organic ingredients. After Verbena, Freitag traveled to France and Italy, working for a short while at L'Arpège restaurant under chef Alain Passard in 1999.^[6]

In 2003, Freitag and restaurateur Godfrey Polistina opened the Upper West Side restaurant Cesca Enoteca & Trattoria.^[7] Freitag was chef de cuisine at Cesca, before moving to an executive chef position at The Harrison.^[8][9] On September 3, 2010, The New York Times reported that Freitag would be leaving the Harrison, and the restaurant's owner, Jimmy Bradley, will return as chef.

From January 2014 until July 2015, Freitag took over as executive chef of the Empire Diner in Manhattan, New York.^[10]

In September 2020, Freitag and Kevin Lillis’ Hospitality Alliance opened the bistro Rise & Thyme in Dallas, Texas.^[11][12]

Restaurants

Current

• Rise & Thyme, Dallas (2020–present)

Former

• Vong New York, New York City (1989–1994)
• Verbena, New York City (1994–?)
• Arpège, Paris (1999)
• Cesca Enoteca & Trattoria, Upper West Side, New York City (2003–?)
• The Harrison, New York City (?–2010)
• Empire Diner, New York City (2014–2015)

Television appearances

Since 2009, Freitag is a frequent judge on the culinary reality game show Chopped.^[13]

In 2009, She battled Bobby Flay on Iron Chef America in “Battle: King Crab” (season 7, episode 10), with judges Keyshawn Johnson, Maggie Rodriguez, and Domenica Catelli. She narrowly lost, with a score of 49 against Flay's 50 points. The judging was evenly matched, with the exception of Freitag having earned one point fewer in the "taste" category.^[6][14]

Freitag competed in The Next Iron Chef Season 2, finishing in fourth place. Freitag stated she would continue as a judge on Chopped for the 2010 season^[15] and she returned for the season four episode "Against the Tide".^[16]

On the April 15, 2012 episode of Iron Chef America, Freitag appeared alongside Chopped Grand Champion Madison Cowan in "Battle: Kale",^[17] acting as Cowan's sous chef. She appeared as a contestant on season five of The Next Iron Chef. She lost to Alexandra Guarnaschelli in the finale on December 23.

On May 22, 2015, she and Ty Pennington began hosting the new Food Network series American Diner Revival, on which they make over diners' menus and interiors.^[18]

Publications

• Freitag, Amanda; King, Carrie (2015). The Chef Next Door: a pro chef's recipes for fun, fearless home cooking. New York City, NY: William Morrow, an imprint of Harper Collins. ISBN 9780062345837.

References

1. Hyman, Vicki. "Umami, shmumami: 'Next Iron Chef' says goodbye to Amanda Freitag", The Star-Ledger, November 8, 2009. Accessed April 29, 2013. "Amanda Freitag apparently didn't have the umami (Japanese for deliciousness) to continue in 'The Next Iron Chef.' The Cedar Grove-raised chef, who also appears a judge on the Food Network's 'Chopped,' had made it all the way to the final four."
2. Rosenblum, Dan. "What's Amanda Freitag's secret ingredient? A dash of Cedar Grove", Verona-Cedar Grove Times, May 25, 2013. Accessed September 22, 2013. "However, her first taste in the cooking profession happened at Memorial High School (now Cedar Grove High School), when Freitag's home economics teacher told her about the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, N.Y."
3. "'The Chef Next Door' at the CIA Copia". Napa Valley Register. September 12, 2016. Retrieved 2022-04-11.
4. Arumugam, Nadia (2015-10-27). Women Chefs of New York. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 978-1-63286-077-4.
5. "Celebrity Chefs Share Their Ultimate Throwback Photos—Can You Guess Who Is Who?". People magazine. January 17, 2022. Retrieved 2022-04-11.
6. . Archived from the original on 2011-08-20. Retrieved 2009-11-17.
7. "Chef Amanda Freitag and Hospitality Alliance to open seasonal café Rise & Thyme in Dallas". Restaurant Hospitality. 2020-09-17. Retrieved 2022-04-11.
8. Mike Colameco (2009). Mike Colameco's Food Lover's Guide to New York City. New York: Wiley. ISBN 978-0-470-04443-8.
9. "Amanda Freitag Gleeful at the Harrison -- Grub Street: New York Magazine's Food and Restaurant Blog". Retrieved 2009-11-17.
10. Morabito, Greg (July 10, 2015). "TV Fixture Amanda Freitag Leaves the Kitchen at Empire Diner". from the original on July 13, 2015. Retrieved January 31, 2016.
11. "Chef Amanda Freitag and Hospitality Alliance to open seasonal café Rise & Thyme in Dallas". Restaurant Hospitality. 2020-09-17. Retrieved 2022-04-11.
12. Shey, Brittanie (2020-09-14). "'Chopped' Judge Amanda Freitag Debuts Her Downtown Dallas Restaurant This Month". Eater Dallas. Retrieved 2022-04-11.
13. "11 Things You Didn't Know About Amanda Freitag". Food Network. Retrieved 2022-04-11.
14. "Iron Chef America: Iron Chef Bobby Flay vs. Amanda Freitag Episode Recap on TV.com". Retrieved 2009-11-19.
15. . Examiner.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2010. Retrieved 2010-01-20.
16. . Chopped. Season 3. Episode 12. March 2, 2010. Food Network. Archived from the original on 2010-03-08. Retrieved 2010-03-12.
17. "Battle Kale". 15 April 2012.
18. The Food Network: American Diner Revival

External links

• Official website
• Amanda Freitag at IMDb