Like millions of Americans, I like to watch cooking shows. I especially like shows like The Next Food Network Star and Top Chef. Watching unknown chefs cook competitively just amazes me. The way they can throw these fantastic meals together with little or no advance planning just amazes me.

Top Chef had a special guest judge tonight and although I don’t usually pay any attention to the judges, Rick Tramonto really imprressed me. He owns several restaurants around Chicago, including the one in tonights show, Tramonto’s Steak & Seafood.

What’s interesting about Rick Tramonto is that his 25 year career started out at Wendy’s. Not some fancy restaurant called Wendys, but Wendy’s Old Fashioned Hamburgers. A native of Rochester, New York, he went to school to learn to be a cook and then, after graduation, took a job as a fry cook to help support his family. After a couple years he moved on to The Scotch and Sirloin and from there his career bloomed. Read the rest of this entry »