John Currence

John Currence is an American chef. He owns six restaurants in Oxford, Mississippi, and in 2009 won a James Beard Award.

Early life and education

John Currence was born in New Orleans, Louisiana. He procured his first cook position on a tugboat in the Gulf of Mexico.^[1] He began his professional cooking career under Bill Neal at his restaurant in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, Crooks Corner.^[1] In 1989, Currence returned to New Orleans as the sous chef at Gautreau's, co-owned by Larkin Selman.^[1] He later pursued an avenue of ownership in the fine dining arena in Oxford, Mississippi, beginning with his first restaurant, City Grocery, originally a Reconstruction era livery stable.^[1] He has resided in Oxford since 1992 and currently lives there with his wife Bess.^[1]

The majority of his childhood was spent in the South, but in the early 1970s, he and his family moved to the United Kingdom. His mother, a history teacher, used to take Currence and his brother out of school for four-day weekends, which they spent traveling around Europe and exploring their new home. On these excursions, Currence experienced multitudes of traditional cuisines in Italy, Germany, and France.^[1]

After returning to the Carolinas and graduating high school, Currence attended the University of North Carolina. One of his part-time jobs while at the university was as a dishwasher at Bill Neal's Crook's Corner. At the time, The New York Times had recently published a story about the restaurant and its climb to fame.^[1]

After working at Gautreau's as a sous chef, he realized he wanted to begin his own restaurant business. After visiting a friend, an undergraduate at the time at the University of Mississippi, Currence decided to convert the building, which was once a livery stable, into what is now City Grocery.^[1]

Career

Restaurants

Currence owns six major restaurants in Oxford, Mississippi. He is the owner of City Grocery, Big Bad Breakfast, Bourè, Lamar Lounge, and Snackbar. He also owns The Main Event, a catering business based in Oxford for in-house and off-site catering events.^[2] Currence's next project is underway in Atlanta, Georgia, his second opening of Big Bad Breakfast.

City Grocery, John Currence's highest reviewed restaurant by media outlets like Southern Living,^[3] The Daily Meal,^[4] and The New York Times,^[5] has been situated on the Oxford Courthouse Square since 1996. In fall 1999, the first Wine Spectator's Award of Excellence recognized City Grocery's wine list, program, and education. This recognition has been repeated every year since.^[6] City Grocery is typically categorized as deep South and traditional Creole French. After opening his first restaurant, he opened Bouré, Snackbar, and Big Bad Breakfast. He later took ownership of a pre-existing business in Oxford, Lamar Lounge.

Currence's original Big Bad Breakfast is also located in Oxford, Mississippi. Later, Currence opened a location in Birmingham, Alabama, and he plans to open another location in Atlanta, Georgia.^[7]

TV appearances

John Currence was featured as a contestant on season 3 of Top Chef Masters. He was knocked out during the 3rd round. On the first episode, "Restaurant Wars", all of the chefs were divided into pairs and all were required to select a secret ingredient. In the pairs, the chefs were required to use both of ingredients each had chosen. The dishes he prepared for the judges on the second episode was Vietnamese Chicken Meatballs. He won the second round, episode 2: "Everything Old is New Again". John Currence was featured on a third episode, which ultimately knocked him out of the competition. The dish he prepared was Roasted Shiitake and Prosciutto Risotto with Pine Nuts and Paprika. This judges removed him from the competition. Bravo TV, the network on which Top Chef Masters is hosted, released John Currence's pre competition interview.^[8] The Travel Channel's Bizarre Foods, hosted by Andrew Zimmern, explores The Blues Trail with John Currence on the subject of Bizarre BLT, featuring a BLT made with testicles.^[9] He has also appeared on an episode of No Reservations: Parts Unknown, hosted by Anthony Bourdain, about the Mississippi Delta and southern culture.^[10] In 2009 he was featured on the CBS Early Show during a segment called "A Chef on a Shoestring". The segment featured how to cook a three-course meal for four for under $35.^[11]

Publications

Currence has published two books, Pickles, Pigs & Whiskey: Recipes from My Three Favorite Food Groups and Then Some and Big Bad Breakfast: The Most Important Book of the Day. Pickles, Pigs & Whiskey was featured and reviewed in articles by The New York Times, The Washington Post, and other news outlets. The New York Times described it as "a culinary rebel yell in a new key".^[12] Currence's second cookbook, Big Bad Breakfast, was featured as the Los Angeles Times Cookbook of the Week.^[13]

Awards and recognition

John Currence was the recipient of the James Beard Award in 1992 for Best Chef South.^[14] The Southern Documentary Project filmed the announcement and his acceptance speech.^[15] The Mississippi Restaurant Association awarded him the Restauranteur of the Year and Chef of the Year awards.^[16] In 2008, Currence won The Great American Seafood Cookoff hosted annually in New Orleans, Louisiana. The Southern Foodways Alliance awarded Currence the Guardian of Tradition award in 2006, and he was awarded the Mississippi State Tourism Investment Award in 2015.^[17][18] In 2014 the Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance awarded Currence Best Cookbook Award for Pickles, Pigs & Whiskey.

Philanthropy and activism

Currence was featured in The New York Times for launching the Big Gay Mississippi Welcome Table, a protest against Governor Phil Bryant's signing of the anti-gay House Bill 1523.^[19][20]

When interviewed for Top Chef Masters, he emphasized that if he won the competition, he would donate money towards No Kid Hungry, which is a fund designated to end childhood hunger in the United States and is sponsored by many large companies including Food Network, Walmart, Citigroup, and Arby's.^[21]

John Currence bought the restaurant Lamar Lounge, and currently runs the building as a not-for-profit business. All revenue sourced from the business is used for general upkeep of the building and workers' salaries. The remaining funds are then donated to Mississippi not-for-profit organizations.^[22]

Yoknapatapha Arts Council

As president of the Yoknapatapha Arts Council, Currence was involved in creating the Square Table Cookbook, a collection of Oxford, Mississippi recipes. The book was published in 2005 as a fundraiser for the Arts Council and is currently in its fifth printing. It represented the University of Mississippi in Tony Chachere's Tailgating Cook-off Competition, and Currence's Catfish and Tasso Savory Cheesecake recipe was selected as a Top 12 finalist.^[23]

References