BIOS

MICHAEL SCHWARTZ:
MICHAEL'S GENUINE FOOD & DRINK

Chef Michael Schwartz (45), the man behind Michael’s Genuine Food & Drink, the Miami Design District dining sensation, has enjoyed both critical and popular acclaim throughout his distinguished career. A 2009 nominee for the prestigious James Beard Award for Best Chef: South, his latest venture has proved no different.  Open since March 2007, the unpretentious bistro hits all the right notes – with happy diners as well as the culinary media.  New York Times’ dining critic Frank Bruni included Chef Schwartz’s restaurant on the 2008 compilation of the 10 best new restaurants in the United States, ranking him fourth; while Food & Wine includes Michael’s Genuine on the magazine’s 2008 Go List and recently lauded the chef with a ten page spread in the December 2008 issue.  Condé Nast Traveler also anointed the restaurant to its 2008 Hot List and Metropolitan Home magazine’s April 2008 issue featured a lush six page spread on Michael’s Genuine that described the chef as “the real deal” and pegs his cuisine as “seductive and elegant.”

Singled out in Gourmet magazine’s annual restaurant guide as one of the nation’s best Farm to Table restaurants, and in Bon Appétit as “the hottest indie act in town” and a place where “the food comes first”, the restaurant also made Esquire magazine’s prestigious list of Best New Restaurants 2007, a guide to the country’s top twenty new dining destinations.

Schwartz first became known to Miami diners in the mid-1990s when he opened Nemo, an exciting venue that quickly became one of South Beach’s most beloved restaurants – a hit with visitors and locals alike.  Kudos quickly followed, including Nemo’s designation as one of the Best New Restaurants in America by Esquire Magazine.  Under Schwartz’s aegis, other South Beach restaurants – Shoji Sushi and Big Pink – followed and were equally successful.  

Since that time, Schwartz has made his mark on the South Florida dining landscape as a culinary innovator, notable for his predilection for using exceptionally fresh products. After many years honing his craft, Schwartz and his wife Tamara, who oversees the front of the house, opened Michael’s Genuine, a charming and welcoming restaurant that doubles as a casual neighborhood dining spot and a culinary destination by virtue of the self-trained chef’s outstanding cuisine offered at reasonable prices. Schwartz, who considers himself a disciple of Alice Waters, has achieved national renown by creating the taste that diners crave – simply sublime cuisine created with the highest quality ingredients.   

Schwartz is a member of Slow Food Miami, is on Food & Wine magazine's Grow for Good Campaign Committee, and part of the advisory board for Miami Dade College's new culinary arts program launching in August 2010.  Upcoming projects include a Michael’s Genuine Food & Drink outpost in Grand Cayman (summer 2010) and the chef’s first cookbook due out in spring 2011.

CHARLES BELL: General Manager
MICHAEL'S GENUINE FOOD & DRINK

The opening of Michael's Genuine Food and Drink has reunited Chef Michael Schwartz with seasoned General Manager Charles Bell. Bell, who first teamed up with Schwartz back in 1995 as General Manager at the chef’s award-winning Nemo restaurant, has spent the past decade overseeing culinary operations at top dining destinations in South Florida and New York. After Nemo, Bell served as the general manager of South Beach's popular China Grill, before taking on the role of Food and Beverage Director for the Delano Hotel. He held the same position at the four star resort, Little Palm Island, before moving onto New York and a stint at the trendy Hudson Hotel. Bell returned to Miami to work with Schwartz on the launch of Michael's Genuine Food & Drink and has been an integral part of the new restaurant's incredible success.

Born in Mississippi, Bell pursued a career in specialty store retailing prior to becoming involved in the hospitality industry. Based in New York and Los Angeles, Bell worked with upscale retailers including Saks Fifth Avenue, Neiman Marcus and I. Magnin before parlaying his well-honed management skills into the restaurant business as one of the savviest general managers in South Florida.

HEDY GOLDSMITH:  Executive Pastry Chef
MICHAEL'S GENUINE FOOD & DRINK

The New York Times referred to Hedy Goldsmith’s desserts as "strikingly beautiful, but not contrived, marvels of texture and balance." And it is that exacting artistry that has won her continued praise from both industry professionals and the public.

After beginning her career in New York, Goldsmith first attracted industry notice as pastry chef for Mark Militello’s celebrated Mark’s Place restaurant in North Miami in the early 1990s. From there, she moved onto Nemo and Shoji Sushi, two South Beach culinary landmarks owned by rising star chef, Michael Schwartz. A great friendship and mutual respect began to grow between the two. Schwartz moved onto other projects, while Goldsmith stayed on, adding Prime 112 to the roster of restaurants for whom she created desserts. In 2006, looking for a break from the daily grind of the restaurant kitchen, Goldsmith began focusing on projects of passion; developing a line of sweet and savory retail and wholesale products that would carry her name. She also began consulting; working with national restaurant groups and pitching in to help Schwartz shortly after he opened his new Miami Design District restaurant, Michael’ s Genuine Food & Drink to rave reviews. The renewed synergy was undeniable; Goldsmith is once again creating inspirational desserts at Michael’s Genuine as the restaurant’s executive pastry chef.

Locally, and nationally, she is known for her unabashed creativity and unique flavors. Her menu at Michael’s Genuine is a revelation; reliant upon seasonal ingredients and an incredible balance of flavors. Standouts include candied Granny Smith apple and walnut streusel panini with crème fraiche and caramel sauce, tangerine pot de crème with pistachio baklava and tangerine cardamom confit, key lime cheesecake flan with macadamia short bread, tropical fruit salsa and passion fruit coulis and chocolate cremoso, with sea salt, olive oil, sour dough crostini and espresso parfait.

Hedy, a Philadelphia native who has always had an artistic eye, received her B.A. in Photography and Film from the Philadelphia College of Art. Afterwards, she attended the Culinary Institute of America in New York, graduating with honors from the CIA’s first Baking & Pastry class in 1985. She also studied at the International Pastry Arts Center in Bedford Hills, New York, where she refined her skills by concentrating on the study of chocolate, sugar and presentation.

She began her career as assistant pastry chef at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City and after that worked as director of dining services for the Bank of New York and Citibank. In 1992, having learned the business side of the industry, she returned to her first passion as pastry chef at the aforementioned Mark’s Place in North Miami. At Mark’s, Hedy sharpened her skills and began her focus on local ingredients used at the peak of their flavors. The industry immediately started taking notice.

Hedy has appeared on a number of television shows, including TV Food Network’s Iron Chef (winning with Michelle Bernstein against Bobby Flay); Public Television’s Great Chefs series and Fox News. She has been featured in publications such as Food & Wine, Gourmet, The New York Times, Bon Appetit and the Miami Herald; and has had her recipes published in cookbooks such as Hot Chocolate (Ten Speed Press).

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