Cedric Vongerichten
Cédric Vongerichten was born in 1981 in Bangkok, Thailand, when his father, Jean- Georges Vongerichten was the Chef at the Oriental Hotel in Bangkok. Soon after, at the age of 2, Cédric moved to New York. It did not take long for him to find his calling. At the age of 9, he was already playing in his father’s kitchen at the Lafayette in New York, and by the time he was 17 he officially began his career as a chef at a restaurant in the Bahamas. He continued to learn about food and refine his techniques as he traveled the world to work at London’s Berkeley Hotel, Hong Kong’s Mandarin Oriental, and at El Bulli in Barcelona. A graduate of the prestigious Culinary Institute of America, he worked through the ranks at several Jean Georges Restaurants. In 2010, he was selected as ten chefs to watch by magazine Restaurant Hospitality. In 2011, Cédric was named by Zagat as one of the top 30 up and coming chef’s under 30. In 2014, Cédric partnered with American Express for the launch of Centurion Lounge LaGuardia, New York City, where he offers seasonal and local dishes. In 2015, Cédric received an “Outstanding Contribution” from the James Beard Foundation. In 2018, he partnered with Alila Hotels, a luxury small boutique hotel in Jakarta to open a casual dining place with New York City ambiance call Vong Kitchen and a seat down burger bar call Le Burger. Both restaurants have appeared on Forbes, Harper’s Bazaar, and Cosmopolitan, among others. Cédric has appeared several times on television such as The Martha Stewart Show and The Food Network; a judge at Beat Bobby Flay and several prominent magazine such as NY Magazine, Food and Wine magazine, Restaurant Insider, and Gotham. His latest restaurant, Wayan, offers Indonesian cuisine with a modern French flair. Located in the picturesque streets of Nolita, Wayan is the name given to the first-born child or in this case, to the Chef’s first independent culinary effort. “NYC’s Most Noteworthy Restaurant Openings of 2019,” according to Thrillist, the mom-and-pop restaurant has received rave reviews from The New York Times, The New Yorker, Vogue, and Eater, among others. Soon in January 2023, Cedric will open Ma-Dé. It’s a new concept next to Wayan Restaurant that focus in seafood and vegetable with global Asian influences.
