Charlie Trotter was serving skate wing terrine at the Citymeals-On-Wheels event at Rockefeller Center when I first met him. He greeted visitors to his table graciously with a kind, boyish smile, and seemed in better spirits than many of the other chefs after a heavy rainfall had nearly ruined this early June charity event. While Chef Trotter appeared elegant, he belied the prototypical mold of “star chef”. Without his chef jacket, he could perhaps be mistaken for a humble financier or Wall Street lawyer, yet seemed sophisticated enough to blend well among the wealthy socialites who were in attendance. With these insights in tow, I walked away considering him to be modest, quiet, and bordering on bashful.

I couldn’t have assessed a person more inaccurately. While anyone who follows culinary trends knows him to be a brilliant chef, he is anything but shy, and his visionary flair for innovation extends far beyond his creations in the kitchen. Chef Trotter is a quick thinker and a speedy orator, and during our interview he exhibited a delightful combination of skillful listening and strong, thought-provoking opinions. He is an interesting, multi-dimensional, self-described libertarian who is just as well-known for his loud kitchen voice and near-fanatical cleanliness as he is for his kindness, loyalty, and selfless donation of both his personal time and his resources. [read more]

by Andre Compeyre, as told to Allison Parker