Jody Adams
Rialto
taped at Michela’s
Cambridge MA
http://www.rialto-restaurant.com
When a young child grows up without television, great things can happen. That was certainly the case for Jody Adams, whose interest in cooking was sparked at an early age. ‚“We were a family without a TV. I think that left a lot of room and time to do things that were creative,‚” she remembers, ‚“and one of them was cooking.‚”
While studying anthropology at Brown University, Adams began working with food writer and teacher Nancy Verde Barr, and remained her apprentice all through college. She was then hired at Seasons in the Bostonian Hotel in Boston, which has played a key role in the development of many chefs. Adams was fortunate enough to work with Lydia Shire, who went on to her own restaurant and fame but who was at that time the chef of Seasons. Later she joined Gordon Hamersley as sous chef at Hamersley´s Bistro.
Then Adams went to work as executive chef at Michela´s, the nationally-recognized regional Italian restaurant in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Her appointment to Michela´s in 1990 was a fortuitous one, since it was the only available job in Boston that attracted her. Adams brought her own New England orientation to traditionally inspired rustic Italian cooking, reflected in such signature dishes as Porcini Broth with Soft Polenta.
‚“People say that the choices on the Michela´s menu range from really rich to downright heart-healthy. My first concern is taste and happily Italian cuisine offers people the best of both worlds,‚” said Adams at the time. Her love of Mediterranean cuisine earned Adams the 1991 Best Chef de Cuisine award from Boston magazine.
Adams formed a partnership with restaurateur Michela Larson and restaurant general manager Christopher Myers and opened Rialto in the Charles Hotel in Harvard Square, where she now presides. Four months after opening the restaurant won four stars from the Boston Globe. The menu features regional cuisine from the southern European countries that Adams fell in love with during her travels in France, Italy, and Spain. The James Beard Foundation recognized her skill in 1997 with the title ‚“Best Chef, Northeast.‚”
Jody Adams´ next venture was blu, opened in 2001 in the Sports Club/LA, 100 feet in the air. This restaurant is known for its blend of American classics grounded in European cuisine. Adams herself is known for her careful research of regional cooking and her ability to be ‚“true to particularly regional culinary traditions of the Latin Crescent of Europe.‚” Adams´ signature pizza and pasta dishes are an integral part of the menu. In 2002 she co-wrote a cookbook, In the Hands of a Chef: Cooking with Jody Adams of Rialto Restaurant, with her husband, Ken Rivard. Of her chosen profession, Adams notes, ‚“It´s physical, it´s creative, it´s immediate, it makes people happy.‚”
