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GREGORY GOURDET
IT WAS ANOTHER CUTTHROAT SEASON
on Bravos Top Chef as contestants battled
it out in Boston and beyond for the
$125,000 grand prize and, more importantly, bragging rights. Chef Gregory Gourdet,
the openly gay chef from Departure (525
SW Morrison St. Tel: 503-802-5370.
(www.departureportland.com) in Portland,
Oregon, was a lead contender throughout
the season, but fell just short of snagging
the win in the grand finale in Mexico. While
he may not have walked away with the title,
Gourdet proved himself a fierce competitor
and role model to thousands of gay youths
pursuing careers in the culinary arts.
The native New Yorker picked up his
passion for cooking from a college roommate while studying at the University of
Montana. Gourdet quickly started plotting
his culinary career and moved back to New
York City to work in the restaurant industry
before enrolling at the prestigious Culinary
Institute of America, where he was the first
student to land an internship with the
Jean-Georges Vongerichten Restaurants.
That experience eventually led to his chef
de cuisine role at Restaurant 66,
Vongerichtens modern Chinese eatery,
where Gourdet developed his passion for
Asian ingredientsa trademark for many
of his dishes on Top Chef.
With Top Chef behind him and a whole
new world of opportunity at his doorstep,
Gourdet chatted with us in the VIP Lounge
about whats next.
In Top Chefs season finale, you said: I
think its very important to live in the
moment. You cant hold onto the past.
Thats the way I live my life. How does
that resonate with you in regards to the
shows outcome?
Obviously you want to move forward in life.
I spoke a lot about my recovery this season
and wanting to move ahead. It consumed
me for the past year. I worked hard to get on
the show. I have a great sense of pride, but
at the end of the day, I learned a lot about
myself. I wasnt sure how Id feel watching it
live, but all of the texts and tweets brought
up some emotions. I took major risks in
cooking a fully Mexican menu [in the finale],
but it spoke to me about wanting to be in
the present and not hold back anymore.

16

PASSPORT I APRIL 2015

somewhere where that exists. There will

always be prejudice and inequalities but
weve taken a lot of strides for gays. Ive
never felt uncomfortable in the kitchen.

Top Chef pushed the boundaries outside of

your Asian-cuisine comfort zone. You
embraced each challenge with a sense of
wonder and joyoften faced with unfamiliar ingredients or scenarios (cranberry bog,
pilgrim feast). How do you think recovery
from drugs and alcohol informed your ability to take on these experiences in stride?
From someone who is going through and in
recovery, what Ive learned is that some things
just dont matter. You cant sweat the small
stuff. Ive experienced a lot of horrible things. I
didnt win Top Chef, but my life could be worse.
The other side is that Im aggressive and competitive, and I play to win. Im grateful for all the
opportunities. Everything will be okay.
The series portrayed you as the nice guy
who never seemed to lose his temper.
Were there any off-camera moments
where you just unraveled?
They would have shown it if I did! I was very
focused. Mei (this seasons winner) was the
same way. We were playing to win. We didnt
even talk to each other for the first half. Youre
stripped of the outside the world and focused
on the competition. It takes a lot to get my
blood boiling. I knew I had to focus my energies on the competition and keep my cool.
Weve seen lesbian chefs like Anne Burrell
and Cat Cora break the mold of queers in
the kitchen. Do you see it as more of a challenge for a gay male chef to come out?
I dont. Im pretty sure theres still the old
school super bro kitchen, but I dont live

You cut your teeth in the New York restaurant scene and have been in Portland,
Oregon, since 2008. Whats the difference
in the cities food culture?
In New York you have a little of everything.
Theres a sense of fine dining. Theres nothing at
that level in Portland. Also in New York, to
choose to make a cooks wage and live in the
city shows a commitmentthey want it a lot
more. Its comfortable and easy to live in
Portland. Cooks see it as an opportunity but
dont see how hard it is, even though Ive had
some great success with my staff. Its a different
playing field. [In Portland] its about the connection with farms and farm-driven menus, growing
things yourself, and knowing where your product is fromits what drives cuisine there.
Youre known as a fitness enthusiast, particularly Bikram yoga and long-distance
running. Are you excited to get back to your
exercise regime?
Its slowly coming back! Im really looking forward to my two days off and reconnecting with
my coach, whos been hounding me for weeks.
Youve mentioned the desire to be at the
helm of a restaurant group with many different concepts. Any teaser as to what the
near future holds for you?
Sage Restaurant Group is opening a
Departure in Denver in 2016. It will be my
first opening as an executive chef, and Im
really excited about that.
How about we let someone else cook for a
change. What are your top three dining
destinations?
Ive been to Japan and want to go again. I want
to finish up Southeast Asia. And China. Lots of
Asian countries! Paul Qui (Austin, TX) does a
really fun take on Asian flavors and ingredients
to create modern and approachable food.
Tell me about your fox necklace.
Ah! I wore it in most of my Top Chef interviews.
Its chiseled silver, and I got it in Vancouver,
British Colombia.
Matthew Wexler