Daniel Humm Only Speaks Chef

""When I moved to New York, I never thought that I would have only one job," says Daniel Humm. The Switzerland-born chef arrived in 2006 to run the kitchen at Eleven Madison Park, which he bought from Danny Meyer in 2011 and where he's been the sole owner since 2019. "It turned out to be this magical place that's bigger than me, and it has defined my whole culinary career," he says. During his time, EMP has become one of the most prominent restaurants in the world."

"It was global news when Humm announced in 2021 that the restaurant would serve only plant-based ingredients, just as it was last year when he announced that meat would to the menu. Now, to mark his 20th anniversary there, the restaurant is staging a 20-day retrospective menu of its greatest hits, including carrot tartare, a clambake, and celery root cooked in pig's bladder."

"Around 11 a.m. we stopped by Carissa's the Bakery in East Hampton to pick up pastries. It's something of a family ritual whenever we're out there. They make incredible shakshuka. I had the pickled sourdough rye bread, toasted, with butter and a sprinkling of flaky sea salt. It's very satisfying - tangy, warm, and slightly chewy - and doesn't need anything else."

Daniel Humm moved to New York in 2006 to run the kitchen at Eleven Madison Park, bought the restaurant in 2011, and has been sole owner since 2019. Eleven Madison Park rose to global prominence under his tenure. The restaurant shifted to a plant-based menu in 2021 and then reintroduced meat last year. To mark his 20th anniversary, a 20-day retrospective menu will revisit signature dishes such as carrot tartare, a clambake, and celery root cooked in pig's bladder. Humm remains mostly but not fully vegetarian and is drawn to childhood flavors like his mother's osso bucos. He spent a holiday week in Amagansett with family, picking up pastries at Carissa's, enjoying shakshuka, pickled sourdough rye with butter and flaky salt, and simple salads and roasted root vegetables from local farms.

Read at Grub Street