After opening 30 restaurants over the last 25 years, James Beard winning restaurateur Kevin Boehm has become one of the nation’s most successful owner/ operators. Boehm, along with his partner Rob Katz, have not only built a thriving restaurant group, but have established a culture built on great chefs, inspired design, and enlightened hospitality.
Born in 1970, Boehm grew up in Springfield, Illinois and knew at a young age that he wanted to be in the restaurant business. After working in the industry for just a few years, he saved enough money to open a 6-table restaurant in 1993 called the Lazy Daze Café, in quaint Seaside, Florida. Indigo Wine Bar (Blue Mountain Beach, FL), Indigo (Springfield, IL) and Six Degrees (Nashville, TN) would follow, and Boehm got his education opening and selling 4 restaurants all before the age of 30.
In 2002, Boehm would partner with Rob Katz, and the two would open 26 places together in less than 16 years. Their portfolio includes Boka, Balena, GT Fish + Oyster, GT Prime Steakhouse, Girl and the Goat, Little Goat, Duck Duck Goat, Swift & Sons, Cold Storage, Bellemore, Somerset, Devereaux, Momotaro, The Izakaya, Elaine’s, The J.Parker, Cabra, Cira, Lazy Bird, and Little Momma. In 2019, the group is also opening Girl and the Goat in Los Angeles. The group’s many accolades and accomplishments include 12 James Beard Finalist nominations, two Food & Wine’s Best New Chefs, 9 consecutive Michelin Stars for Boka, 6 Boka Group restaurants in Chicago Tribune’s Top 50 list, and a James Beard Win and Iron Chef designation for Stephanie Izard.
Boehm, along with Katz, won Restaurateurs of the Year in TimeOut Chicago in 2010, the Chicago Tribune in 2011, and were Eater National’s Empire Builders of the Year in 2012. They have been James Beard Finalists for Best Restaurateur in America in 2016, 2017, and 2018 and New City Chicago ranked them #1 in 2017 in its annual list of the 50 most powerful influencers on the Chicago dining scene. In 2019 they won Outstanding Restaurateur in America at the James Beard Awards.
Boehm has been a featured or keynote speaker for the National Restaurant Show, MUFSO, Miami Food & Wine, New York City Wine & Food Festival, The Illinois Restaurant Association, Kellogg School of Management, University of Illinois, The Global Business District, Chicago Gourmet, Asheville Independent Restaurant Show, Cameron Mitchell Restaurants, The Welcome Conference at Lincoln Center, Welcome Chicago, Hearst Publishing, Roti, and aSweatLife Wellness Summit. He has given the commencement address at both Culinary Institute of America and Kendall College. He currently sits on the board of the Illinois Restaurant Association, OpenTable, 826 CHI, and Easter Seals. Boehm lives in downtown Chicago with his wife, Cortney, and his three children, Sofia, Lola, and Luca.
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Kevin Boehm Biography
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