BB&T Charleston Food + Wine Festival

Chef Joël Antunes’ commitment to healthy, inspired and creative French cuisine all began in his grandmother’s kitchen in the south of France. Born in 1961 in Volvic, France, Antunes officially began his culinary training in 1975. Chef Antunes has been chef at celebrated restaurants such as Ledoyen and Duquesnoy in Paris, the Hotel Negresco in Nice, worked under celebrated French pastry chef Yves Thuries and served as chef poissonier for the legendary Paul Bocuse in Lyons. Continuing his climb up the culinary ladder, he became sous chef at Troisgros in Roanne, France before relocating to Bangkok, Thailand to serve as chef cuisinier at the Oriental Hotel’s Normandie restaurant. After another short stint in France at Marc Meneau’s Michelin three-star restaurant in the Hotel Picardy in 1990, Chef Antunes became chef-partner at the critically acclaimed London establishment Les Saveurs, where his culinary prowess earned the restaurant a Michelin star in 1994 and recognition as “restaurant of the year” from British magazine Decanter. In 1997, Chef Antunes became chef of The Dining Room at the Ritz-Carlton, Buckhead upon the recommendation of famed chefs Daniel Boulud and Alain Ducasse. During his tenure, the restaurant received a Mobil five-star award as well as an AAA five-diamond award, making it the only restaurant in the southeast to simultaneously hold both accolades. In 2001, Chef Antunes left the Ritz-Carlton to open his own restaurant, JOËL, in Atlanta. He was awarded the prestigious James Beard award in 2005 for Best Chef in the Southeast as well as the AAA Four Diamond Award and the Dirona Award. Chef Antunes has been featured in numerous publications including Gourmet, Food & Wine, Esquire, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, and Atlanta magazine, and in television appearances including The Today Show and Rachael Ray’s Tasty Travels.

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