About
For much of the past two decades, John DeLucie has been one of New York City’s most popular Chefs. The man behind restaurants like The Lion, Waverly Inn, Empire Diner, and Ambra, the famed chef is better than ever and back in the kitchen, but now also in the comfort of home.
After partnering up with Eytan Sugarman & team, together opened Ambra in the the West Village for NYFW in September 2023. Offering artisanal high-end Italian food, Ambra was quickly established as a must-go neighborhood spot and destination for the fashion set.
Returning to his Brooklyn roots, DeLucie opened the 10,000 square foot Ainslie in 2019. The Italian restaurant boasts a wine bar, outdoor garden, lounge, and rooftop.
In 2017, DeLucie partnered with Cafeteria Group to reopen Chelsea’s iconic Empire Diner located on 10th Ave near The High Line. The Diner features an 80-seat outdoor terrace and is bustling from breakfast until late night with a menu focused on elevated American Comfort food.
In 2016, inspired by the wood grilling tastes he experienced on a vacation to Buenos Aires, DeLucie opened Bedford & Co. in mid-town Manhattan in the historic Renwick Hotel. The restaurant features seasonal American cooking utilizing a hand-made wood-burning grill.
In 2010 DeLucie’s acclaimed restaurant, The Lion was called “eye-catching” (W Magazine), “the latest addition to the power pantheon” (Time Out New York), and “the edge of the volcano” (Gael Greene) that “has the media, fashion and pretty folks out in force” (Women’s Wear Daily). But it’s not the celebrity clientele that demands the most attention. In the end, it all comes down to John’s simple cooking—a passion that was instilled in him as a little boy.
In 2005 DeLucie along with Graydon Carter founded The Waverly Inn, where his take on classic American cuisine attracted both the celebrity crowd and serious food fans, who were wowed by his original and eye-opening offerings.
His memoir, The Hunger: A Memoir of an Accidental Chef (HarperCollins, 2009) discussed his path to becoming a chef and restaurateur. When he graduated from Gallatin, his plan was, he says, to replace Jimmy Page in Led Zeppelin. Although he tried his hand at a few 9-to-5 jobs, he eventually gave in to his natural culinary curiosity, first taking courses at New York’s New School for Culinary Arts, and then getting his first food job, chopping 40-pound bags of onions in the back room of Dean & DeLuca. He was working as an executive recruiter when he decided to take a 12-week cooking class at the New School, which led to his life of cooking. In 2009 and 2010, he was the first Celebrity Chef honored at the MTV Movie Awards. He has been featured on Entertainment Tonight, The Today Show, CBS’s The Early Show, Martha Stewart, Late Night With Jimmy Fallon, and in Vanity Fair, The Wall Street Journal, Town & Country, New York Times, and Saveur.
Today, DeLucie’s style remains as distinctively simple as it is universally praised.