Debra Ponzek

Debra Ponzek was born and brought up in Morristown, New Jersey.^[1] She studied engineering at Boston University, but dropped out and decided to pursue a career in cooking and attended The Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York where she graduated in 1984.^[2] She would later return to the institute to give the commencement address to the students in 2015.^[3] As part of an externship, she worked in Chatham, New Jersey, at the Tarragon Tree restaurant and at Toto Steakhouse in Summit, New Jersey.^[1]

Following graduation, she began working under Drew Nieporent at his restaurant Montrachet as a sous chef.^[3] Nieporent was an advertising executive who had spotted her when she worked at Toto Steakhouse.^[1] She went on to become executive chef at Montrachet for seven years, during which time the restaurant was praised by the food critics of New York City.^[3] While there she won the 1992 James Beard Foundation Award for Rising Star Chef.^[4] She appeared on the Great Chefs - Great Cities television series, preparing three dishes.^[1] Ponzek departed Montrachet in 1994, and opened her own restaurant, Aux Délices in Greenwich, Connecticut.^[3] She has since expanded this to multiple sites, and runs cooking classes out of her central kitchen for the restaurants.^[1]