Downers Grove North Alum Cooks His Way to Dream Job on Food Network's 'Chef Wanted'

A former Downers Grove high school culinary student competed this summer on the Food Network show Chef Wanted and earned that episode’s top prize: a chef position at a beautiful California resort. 

Chicago area Executive Chef Chris Turano competed against three other chefs on the show and ultimately earned the right to become the Chef de Cuisine for The Bistro, an oceanside restaurant owned by the Bacara Resort and Spa in Santa Barbara, CA. The program aired August 1.

Turano attended the award-winning high school culinary program at Technology Center of DuPage (TCD) in Addison as an elective through Downers Grove North High School. TCD is the advanced career and technical education elective for 14 DuPage area high school districts, including Community High School District 99, offering students 24 programs in preparation for college and a career. 

Turano graduated in 2001 and obtained his associate’s degree in culinary arts through College of DuPage. Within a few years he earned Executive Chef certification.

The first round of the Chef Wanted competition required each of the four chefs to create a dish featuring Santa Barbara’s local foods from both land and sea, followed by breakfast and dinner dishes using eggs.

This round eliminated two candidates and produced two finalists, including Turano, who then had to run The Bistro’s dinner service on separate nights. Each chef had his share of ups and downs during dinner, but in the end the Bacara representatives were most impressed with Turano’s food and flavors. He was awarded and happily accepted the Chef de Cuisine position at The Bistro, even though it meant a move from family and friends in Chicago.

About his Chef Wanted experience, Turano said: “Anne [Burrell, the show’s chef host] was tough to work with, but she was very fair. It was a great experience. I kept on telling myself that the job was mine to lose. If I did what I knew I could do, I would come out on top.”

Turano began putting his TCD culinary skills to work while still in high school, in the kitchen at Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital. During college, he worked under the tutelage of Chef Ted Cizma (Food & Wine magazine’s “Best Chef of 2001”) at the Elaine Restaurant in Naperville.

Since then, Turano has had more than 10 years of food and beverage experience in the Chicago area, six as an executive chef, for venues including the Chicago Firehouse Restaurant, the Crowne Plaza Chicago, the ESTATE Ultra Club (Chicago), the Quadrangle Club (University of Chicago) and Parker’s Grill in Downers Grove.

Turano gives this advice to aspiring young chefs: “Keep your head up, do what you know, and keep your ego out of it!”

Note: This story was submitted by the Technology Center of DuPage.