Traveling Chefs

Speaker Wylie Dufresne

Wylie Dufresne was born in 1970 in Providence, Rhode Island moving to New York in 1977. In 1992 he completed a B.A. in philosophy at Colby College, Maine. After college, Wylie enrolled at the French Culinary Institute in New York and was then employed in various Jean-Georges restaurants from 1993 ...

Wylie Dufresne was born in 1970 in Providence, Rhode Island moving to New York in 1977. In 1992 he completed a B.A. in philosophy at Colby College, Maine.

After college, Wylie enrolled at the French Culinary Institute in New York and was then employed in various Jean-Georges restaurants from 1993 until 1999. In 1999 he became the first chef at 71 Clinton Fresh Food.

Dufresne opened wd~50 in April of 2003.

Frank Bruni of the New York Times awarded wd~50 three stars in March of 2008. In 2006 wd~50 received one star from the Michelin Guide, which it has retained in each subsequent year.

Wylie has been nominated for multiple James Beard Awards, including “Best Chef New York” for seven consecutive years, winning the award in 2013.

Alder, Dufresne’s second restaurant, opened in Manhattan’s East Village in March 2013.

Speaker Ivan Orkin

Ivan Orkin was born on Long Island NY in 1963 to Louise and Leonard Orkin. His mother’s notorious lack of skills in the kitchen and his father’s incredible work ethic helped shape him into the man he is today. A dishwashing job at a sushi bar in Syosset, Long Island ...

Ivan Orkin was born on Long Island NY in 1963 to Louise and Leonard Orkin. His mother’s notorious lack of skills in the kitchen and his father’s incredible work ethic helped shape him into the man he is today.

A dishwashing job at a sushi bar in Syosset, Long Island when Ivan was 15 opened his mind to a new culture and cuisine that he simply could not stop thinking about.