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Chef Jeff Thurston was born and raised in Toronto, Canada. His passion for cooking peaked at an early age. He began cooking at the age of fourteen, when he worked at Le Pigalle in Toronto's Theater District. Jeff's desire and dedication helped him survive the rigorous regiment of the old European style kitchens. After several years of training under various chefs, he developed the necessary skills and discipline in order to pursue his dream of being a chef.
In 1990, Jeff was offered the opportunity to train under Wolfgang Puck at his Eureka and Chinois on Main restaurants in Los Angeles. This experience allowed Jeff to explore the exciting world of California and Pacific Rim cuisine. He took this invaluable experience and used it to assist in the opening of Hans Rockenwagner's Rox Restaurant in the Beverly Prescott Hotel. Jeff's progress gained him the role of Executive Sous Chef at Chef Rockenwagners' Rockenwagner Restaurant. This later lead to Jeff's appointment as Chef de Cuisine at Fana Restaurant, which was Chef Rockenwager's Mediterranean restaurant in Santa Monica, California.
In 1994, Chef Thurston was asked to join the exciting opening team at the now famous, Moose's Restaurant in San Francisco's North Beach. His experience at Moose's led him to the challenge of raising the level of cuisine at the first Gordon Biersch Brewery and Restaurant in San Francisco. After successfully generating a dynamic culinary standard for Gordon Biersch, he moved on to bring his extensive background to the Essex Supper Club, as Consulting Chef. With his newly created menus, Chef Thurston explored the unique diversity of San Francisco's global influences. His unique brand of Contemporary American cuisine utilizes the finest local and imported ingredients.
In 1998, Chef Thurston was recruited to join Wolfgang Puck as Executive Chef at Puck's latest venture; Obachine Asian Restaurant and Satay Bar in Seattle. With his extensive knowledge of Pacific Rim cuisine, Jeff dove in to the unique flavors of Asian cuisine. With the influences of Indian, Chinese, Japanese and Thai, Jeff created a distinct fusion, all in one menu.
Jeff Thurston joined the Cohn Family of Restaurants in 1999 at their historic project, The Prado at Balboa Park, located at the heart of San Diego's beautiful Balboa Park. Under Chef Thurston's creative direction, The Prado won honors as San Diego's Best New Restaurant, has been named one of America's Top Restaurants by Gourmet Magazine, received the coveted "4 Star" Award by the California Restaurant Writer's Association and most recently, named "Chef of the Year" by the California Restaurant Association. | 