Barbara Lynch

Events

Fri. Author Booksigning Session 6
How to Get There: Leading Women of the Culinary World Tell All
Perfectly Paired Dinners (formerly Restaurant Dine-Arounds)
Perfectly Paired Dinners
Restaurant:No. 9 Park
Address:Boston, MA
Website: www.no9park.com

James Beard Award-winner Barbara Lynch is regarded as one of Boston’s, and the country’s, leading chefs and restaurateurs. While growing up in South Boston, Barbara got her first kitchen job cooking at a local rectory at age 13.  It was in high school, however, that an influential home economics teacher and a job working with Chef Mario Bonello at Boston’s esteemed St. Botolph Club piqued her interest in one day becoming a professional chef. During her early twenties, Barbara worked under some of Boston’s greatest culinary talents including Chef Todd English, first at Michaela’s then at Olives and later Figs. After working with Todd for several years, Barbara traveled to Italy where she learned about Italian cuisine firsthand from local women. She returned to Boston and became the executive chef at Galleria Italiana, bringing national acclaim to the tiny trattoria when she captured Food & Wine’s “Ten Best New Chefs in America” award.

In 1998, Barbara opened a restaurant of her own, No. 9 Park, in Boston’s Beacon Hill neighborhood. The restaurant immediately received rave reviews from publications around the country and was named one of the “Top 25 New Restaurants in America” by Bon Appétit and “Best New Restaurant” by Food & Wine.

Barbara expanded her presence in Boston by opening two restaurants in the South End in 2003: B&G Oysters, serving exquisitely fresh oysters and New England classics, and The Butcher Shop, a wine bar and full service butcher shop. Barbara continued to grow her culinary empire by opening three unique concepts in succession: in 2005, Niche Catour, a catering company; Plum Produce in September 2006; and next door, Stir, a demonstration kitchen and cookbook store in 2007.

In fall 2008 Barbara launched two concepts in Boston’s Fort Point neighborhood: Drink, a bar dedicated to the craft of the cocktail and Sportello (Italian for counter service), Barbara’s modern interpretation of a diner. Her catering company, 9 at Home (formerly Niche Catour), relocated to Fort Point in 2008 as well. In spring 2010 Barbara and her team opened the eagerly anticipated third concept in Boston’s Fort Point neighborhood, Menton, a fine dining restaurant. Menton has received several accolades, including a 4-star review from The Boston Globe and recognition as one of the nation’s best new restaurants by top publications and industry standard-bearers including Bon Appétit and Esquire.  In addition, Menton was a James Beard Foundation 2011 nominee for Best New Restaurant.

Barbara’s talents have continued to garner numerous accolades over the years, both locally and nationally. In 2003, The James Beard Foundation named her “Best Chef Northeast” and Travel & Leisure proclaimed No. 9 Park one of the “Top 50 Restaurants in America.” For two consecutive years, No. 9 Park was named “Best Restaurant, General Excellence” by Boston Magazine and Gourmet included it as one of “America’s Top 50 Restaurants” in 2006. In 2007, Boston Magazine named Barbara “Best Chef.”

Barbara and her recipes have been featured in many publications including Saveur, Boston Common, Bon Appetit, The New York Times, and Inc. magazine. She was one of a handful of Bostonians to be profiled in the ABC-TV documentary series “Boston 24/7” and is the subject of a documentary film entitled “Amuse Bouche–A Chef’s Tale.” In 2009, Barbara was honored to receive the Crittenton Women’s Union’s Amelia Earhart Award. Past recipients include Doris Kearns Goodwin and Julia Child. She is also a member of distinguished industry organizations including the Bocuse d’Or USA’s Culinary Council, Women Chefs & Restaurateurs, and Les Maîtres Cuisiniers

Barbara’s first cookbook, Stir: Mixing It Up in The Italian Tradition, was published by Houghton Mifflin in fall 2009 and immediately earned praise from both media and home cooks and received a prestigious Gourmand award for “Best Chef Cookbook” for the US.

As the chef/owner of Barbara Lynch Gruppo, Barbara oversees the operations of eight concepts and employs over 200 people. In addition to running her company, each year she dedicates time and resources to a number of philanthropic missions including the Crittenton Women’s Union, Common Threads, The Greater Boston Food Bank, Share our Strength, and several neighborhood organizations around the city of Boston.