Jerry Traunfeld

Experience

Jerry Traunfeld's fascination with cooking began as a 12-year-old watching Julia Child on television. After graduating from culinary school in San Francisco, he went to work in two of the city's legendary restaurants: Ernie's and Jeremiah Tower's Stars.

He moved to Seattle in his 20s to become the executive chef at the Alexis Hotel and in 1990 took over the kitchen at The Herbfarm where he spent the next 17 years perfecting his signature seasonal Northwest menus that garnered national accolades and helped make the tiny restaurant a top-rated destination. Traunfeld won the 2000 James Beard Award for Best Chef: Northwest/Hawaii.

Inspired by a trip to India to research spices for a new cookbook, he opened his own restaurant Poppy (named after his mother) in 2008. It was based on the concept of the thali — an Indian-style meal made up of a collection of various complementary and contrasting small dishes served on a platter. Both Travel + Leisure and Condé Nast named Poppy one of their best new restaurants. The chef then explored his interest in Sichuan cuisine by opening Lionhead next door to Poppy in 2015. Traunfeld retired as a chef in 2019.