It was, remarkably, in Japan where Cincinnati-raised Michael Anthony was first inspired to cook the French cuisine that he has become synonymous with at New York’s famous Gramercy Tavern.

Inspired by the vibrant food scene in Tokyo, where he went as a degree student to hone his language skills, Anthony started work at a French restaurant, Bistro Shima, under Japan’s quirky female chef Shizuyo Shima, who taught him classic French cooking techniques. At her insistence, he enrolled in Paris’ Grégoire Ferrandi culinary school in 1992, graduating straight into the revered kitchens of Parisian giants Alain Passard at Arpège and Pascal Barbot at Astrance.

His kitchen skills honed, Anthony returned to the USA, and to New York, working first with renowned French chef Daniel Boulud but really making a name for himself at West Village’s Blue Hill restaurant. Here he was spotted by New York’s chef-restaurateur par excellence, Danny Meyer, who invited him to take over the kitchen at his legendary Gramercy Tavern.

The Gramercy’s elegant no-airs-and-graces brasserie style of cuisine proved a natural fit for Anthony. Cooking here, he was able to reference both the rich layers of his French training and his American culinary heritage. Under his leadership the restaurant earned a three-star New York Times review and two James Beard awards, for Outstanding Restaurant and Outstanding Chef in New York.

At ease with modest ingredients, Anthony likes to champion vegetables, often centring on everyday staples – like the humble onion – in his dishes. Eggplant (aubergine) is his ‘all-time favourite’ vegetable – grilled, braised, fried or pickled.

Some chefs leave their uniform at work, but not Anthony. He cooks frequently for his wife and three daughters at home (‘the chef ’s whites don’t necessarily give me a free pass – they are very discerning!’), always in a clean kitchen (‘really important’), often with family around and sometimes with a couple of glasses of wine standing by to set the mood.

Guilty pleasures include the odd tub of Häagen Dazs ice cream, while chocolate chip pancakes are a family favourite. There’s also a regular spot for his mother’s traditional Pennsylvanian Dutch ‘pot pie’ dish: ‘basically vegetable soup with potato dumplings’.

Secret Food Haunt

Norwich Meadows Farm, in Chenango County, New York State, is an organic producer of vegetables, poultry and eggs that has an ‘astounding variety’ of fresh produce.