John Zucker

He/Him/His

Years of Participation

206-2020, 2021-2024

For more than two decades, Executive Chef and Owner John Zucker has been bringing his vision to life in the lowcountry of South Carolina. His award-winning catering company has been voted Best Caterer for the past 19 years in Charleston City Paper and he also runs two successful Charleston restaurants, Cru Café and the most recent addition to his portfolio, Purlieu. The Café opened in 2002 and remains a gem of the downtown restaurant scene, and Purlieu opened in 2018 to nationwide accolades. Zucker was named Charleston’s Best Chef by the Charleston City Paper in 2019.

As the number one graduate in his class from Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, Chef Zucker trained under and worked with celebrity chef Wolfgang Puck at Spago in Las Vegas. From there, he became sous chef for the opening of Canoe, which was a semi-finalist in the ”Best New Restaurant of the Year” category by the James Beard Foundation. Additionally, Chef Zucker is a sought-after restaurant consultant in the Southeast.

Chef Zucker is active in the nonprofit community and served as Vice President of Charleston Chefs Feed the Need organization. Over nearly two decades he has contributed both time and donations to the March of Dimes, Lowcountry Food Bank, Ryan White Program, and Lowcountry Local First, among other organizations.
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