Florence, Tyler 1971-

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Florence, Tyler 1971-

PERSONAL:

Born March 3, 1971, in Greenville, SC; married; wife's name Christie Leer (divorced); children: one son, Miles. Education: Graduated from Johnson and Wales University, College of Culinary Arts (with honors), 1991.

ADDRESSES:

Home—New York, NY.

CAREER:

Served in various positions in the kitchens of New York City restaurants Aureole, Mad 61, and River Café, 1992-95; Cibo, New York, NY, executive chef, 1995-98; Cafeteria, New York, NY, executive chef and creator, 1998; Food Network, host of various cooking shows, including Food 911, Tyler's Ultimate, Planet Food, All American Festivals and My Country, My Kitchen, 1999—.

WRITINGS:

(With JoAnn Cianciulli) Tyler Florence's Real Kitchen, Clarkson Potter (New York, NY), 2003.

Eat This Book: Cooking with Global Fresh Flavors, Clarkson Potter (New York, NY), 2005.

(Author of introduction) Sandra Lee, Semi-homemade Cooking 2: Sandra Lee, Meredith Books (Des Moines, IA), 2005.

Tyler's Ultimate: Brilliant Simple Food to Make Any Time, Clarkson Potter (New York, NY), 2006.

SIDELIGHTS:

Tyler Florence trained as a chef at the College of Culinary Arts at Johnson and Wales University in South Carolina. After graduating, he moved to New York where he began working at a number of renowned restaurants, including Aureole, where he trained under chef Charlie Palmer; Mad 61, where he worked for Marta Pulini; and The River Café, working for Rick Laakkonen. He eventually became the executive chef of Cibo, also in New York, where he focused the menu on modern American cuisine, and in 1998 opened his own restaurant, Cafeteria. Florence rose to national fame when he began hosting cooking programs for the Food Network, first as a guest, then on the popular show, "Food 911," and then eventually as the star of several cooking series. Tyler Florence's Real Kitchen, Florence's first cookbook, written with JoAnn Cianciulli, maintains the same casual attitude toward cooking that Florence projects on television. Categories range from food suitable for a dinner for two to easy items for a backyard barbecue. A Publishers Weekly reviewer noted of the book: "This is a decent, if unfocused collection of recipes." Florence followed up with Eat This Book: Cooking with Global Fresh Flavors, which focuses on regional cooking from different parts of the world and demonstrates easy methods of achieving varied tastes in the kitchen. Of this effort, a reviewer for Publishers Weekly remarked: "Florence's vast culinary knowledge translates well to the page." In Tyler's Ultimate: Brilliant Simple Food to Make Any Time, Florence links his recipes directly to his Food Network television show of the same title. In a review for Publishers Weekly, one contributor noted that "instructions are clear, and each recipe helpfully comes with an estimated cooking time."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Business Wire, August 25, 2006, "Applebee's Brings Renowned Chef and Food Network Personality Tyler Florence to the Neighborhood; Florence and Applebee's Step Up to the Table with One-of-a-Kind Partnership for Innovative Menu Items."

Kirkus Reviews, September 15, 2006, "Cooking in Front of the Camera: Best of the Culinary Stars," p. 9.

Library Journal, February 15, 2003, Judith Sutton, review of Tyler Florence's Real Kitchen, p. 164; September 15, 2006, Judith Sutton, review of Tyler's Ultimate: Brilliant Simple Food to Make Anytime, p. 84.

Nation's Restaurant News, September 11, 2006, "TV Chef Florence Creates Slate of Applebee's Dishes," p. 32; October 16, 2006, Sarah E. Lockyer, "Tyler Florence: TV Host Teams Up with Chain, Heads Back to Kitchen," p. 48.

New York, May 8, 2006, Robin Raisfeld and Rob Patronite, "Tyler Florence: The Food Network Star and People Magazine's Onetime Sexiest Chef Talks about His New Show, His Mysterious New York Restaurant Project, and How Not to Treat a Cocoa Puff," p. 59.

Orange CountyRegister (Orange County, CA), May 23, 2005, Cathy Thomas, "Chef Tyler Florence's Book Offers Honest Flavors in Perfect Balance."

PR Newswire, April 12, 2005, "Celebrity Chef Tyler Florence to Host Southern Living Cook-Off 2005"; July 28, 2005, "Eat This Blog: Chef Tyler Florence to Help You Savor Flavor."

Publishers Weekly, March 17, 2003, review of Tyler Florence's Real Kitchen, p. 68; December 6, 2004, review of Eat This Book: Cooking with Global Fresh Flavors, p. 56; July 24, 2006, review of Tyler's Ultimate, p. 54.

Seattle Times, March 4, 2007, Nicole Tsong, "It's Not Julia Child Anymore."

Snack Food & Wholesale Bakery, September 1, 2006, "Food for the People," p. 40.