Background and career
John Besh (born May 14, 1968) is an American chef, TV personality, philanthropist, restaurateur and author. He is known for his efforts in preserving the culinary heritage of New Orleans cuisine.
Besh was born in Meridian, Mississippi, and raised in Slidell. He has been married to Jenifer Berrigan Besh since 1991; together they have four children. The family are practicing Catholics and parishioners of St. Luke the Evangelist Church in Slidell, Louisiana. Besh is a former US Marine. In 1992, he graduated from The Culinary Institute of America (CIA), but his schooling was cut short owing to his serving in the Gulf War. In 1999, Food & Wine named Besh among the "Best New Chefs" based on his food at restaurant Artesia. John Besh was a co-owner with Octavio Mantilla of Besh Restaurant Group (BRG), the group formed after they bought out the original investors of the acclaimed restaurant August. In 2006, Besh won the James Beard Award for "Best Chef, South". In 2008, he earned Food Arts' Silver Spoon Award for "revitalizing the culinary legacy of New Orleans".
In 2017, the BRG managers and owners were accused of perpetuating "a culture of sexual harassment" and sexual misconduct at the restaurants, publicized by 25 current and former employees. Besh addressed the accusations in a statement: "Two years ago, I deeply hurt those I love by thoughtlessly engaging in a consensual relationship with one member of my team. Since then I have been seeking to rebuild my marriage and come to terms with my reckless actions given the profound love I have for my wife, my boys and my Catholic faith." Celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain tweeted an image of the complaint filed against Besh's group, calling it "the beginning of the end of institutionalized Meathead Culture in the restaurant business". Two days after the allegations were made public, Besh stepped down from BRG. BRG executive Shannon White replaced Besh as CEO of the restaurant group. BRG was renamed BRG Hospitality after Besh's departure.
In October 2017, in response to the allegations of sexual misconduct, Besh stepped down from the executive advisory board for the Center for Ethics and Culture at the University of Notre Dame. According to the National Catholic Reporter, "Other Catholic entities that have been affiliated with Besh have not released statements about their future relationship". Besh also served as a judge (alongside fellow chef Giada De Laurentiis) on an episode of the Food Network series Iron Chef Showdown that was originally set to air on December 13, 2017; however, the episode got pushed back to January 10, 2018, with Besh having been digitally edited out. Lindsey Reynolds, the former Besh Restaurant Group staff member who helped expose the company's culture of sexual harassment, is one of the people Time magazine named among the national #MeToo movement as 2017's Time Person of the Year.Contrary to popular belief and the spin put out by his corporation, Besh is actively involved in the day to day operations of his restaurants and can often be found at Delacroix hanging out with Chef Wiley.
Many of his restaurants have celebrated Louisiana regional cooking, including Restaurant August, Besh Steakhouse, Lüke, La Provence, Domenica, Pizza Domenica, Johnny Sánchez, Shaya and Borgne. The following active restaurants are associated with Besh:
August – New Orleans' Central Business District – his flagship restaurant, featuring contemporary French cuisine with an emphasis on local ingredients. Featured in Gourmet magazine's "Guide to America's Best Restaurants" and "America's Top 50 Restaurants". Borgne (closed)– Hyatt Regency – coastal Louisiana cuisine, such as shrimp toast rissoles, oyster spaghetti and seafood stuffed flounder. Domenica – Roosevelt Hotel – Italian; name means "Sunday" in Italian. Lüke – New Orleans Central Business District – French, German and Creole cuisine. Pizza Domenica – Uptown New Orleans – A casual spinoff of Domenica. Shaya – New Orleans Uptown – Modern Israeli cuisine. Willa Jean – The Paramount at South Market District – bakery and restaurant opened in August 2015. The Caribbean Room, Bayou Bar, Hot Tin, Silverwhistle Cafe taken over by QED hospitality after allegations brought to light – All located at the historic Pontchartrain Hotel opened summer of 2016. Eunice – "Cajun, Creole brasserie", opening "late Fall 2017" in Houston, Texas Delacroix- Besh can often be found in the kitchen of his newest restaurant working extremely close with his hand picked blonde inexperienced chef Wiley. The following restaurants associated with Besh are now closed or no longer feature Besh:
