Grant Achatz

CO-OWNER

Chef Grant Achatz is one of the most awarded and recognized chefs in the world. Known for his innovative, emotional, and modernist style of cuisine, he has been named Best Chef in the United States by the James Beard Foundation, honored by Time Magazine as one of the 100 Most Influential People in the World, and has given talks and lectures on gastronomy and design at conferences and universities around the world.

Grant began working in restaurants as soon as he could walk. His parents owned a diner in Michigan, and he spent his childhood years working alongside his family. After graduating from the Culinary Institute of America at age 21, Grant spent a short time at Charlie Trotter’s before finding his mentor in chef Thomas Keller at the French Laundry. Grant worked for a total of 5 years at the French Laundry, eventually rising to sous chef. During his time in California, he also spent a year working at La Jota vineyards. A short stage at elBulli in Roses, Spain was exceptionally influential and led Grant to seek out his first executive chef position at Trio in Evanston, IL. It was there that his creativity and desire to innovate flourished. In 2002 and 2003, respectively, Grant was recognized by Food & Wine Magazine as one of the nation’s Best New Chefs and named the Rising Star Chef by the James Beard Foundation.

In 2004, Grant partnered with restaurant neophyte, Nick Kokonas, to build his dream restaurant: Alinea. Together, they sought to redefine fine dining in America, questioning not only culinary concepts but also the guest experience, tableware design, and restaurant bookings.

Since its opening, Alinea has been named the Best Restaurant in the World by Elite Traveler, the Best Restaurant in America by Gourmet Magazine, and has twice been awarded the Best Restaurant in North America by The World’s 50 Best Restaurants. Alinea holds 3 stars from the venerable Michelin Guide, held by only 14 restaurants in the United States, and 5 stars from Forbes Travel Guide. Grant and Alinea have won James Beard Awards for: Best Chef, Great Lakes (2007); Outstanding Chef (2008); Outstanding Service (2010); Who’s Who in Food & Beverage (2012); and Outstanding Restaurant (2016). In 2009, the Alinea cookbook won the James Beard Book Award for Cooking from a Professional Point of View.

In 2008, Grant was diagnosed with Stage IVb cancer of the tongue. The recommended course of treatment by multiple experts was a complete amputation of his tongue followed by radiation and chemotherapy. Even then, he faced dismal odds and was told that he likely only had 2 years to live. Instead, he sought out an innovative protocol at the University of Chicago, a grueling course of treatment that has left him with no evidence of disease since 2009. Grant and Nick documented this story in their New York Times bestselling memoir Life, On the Line. It is also featured in the nationally-released documentary movie, Spinning Plates, and Netflix’s documentary series, Chef’s Table.

In 2011, Grant followed Alinea with Next restaurant and the über-modern bar, the Aviary (which includes the retro speakeasy, The Office). In 2012, Next won the James Beard Award for Best New Restaurant in America; in 2013, The Aviary won the James Beard Award for Outstanding Bar Program. In 2016, Grant opened Roister restaurant, which received 1 Michelin star in its first year and was named one of Food & Wine Magazine’s Restaurants of the Year in 2017.

Grant lives in Chicago and has two sons. He devotes his free time to work, even when he enjoys traveling and seeing new parts of the world.

Nick Kokonas

CO-OWNER

Nick Kokonas is the co-owner and co-founder of The Alinea Group. He manages the business development, marketing, and strategy for all current and future operations.

He never expected to be involved in the restaurant industry, despite his Greek last name.

Nick studied Philosophy at Colgate University and nearly attended law school at the urging of his professors. His interests remained, however, in business and entrepreneurship.

Nick spent over a decade as a proprietary trader in equities and currencies, and made markets in futures contracts, forwards, and ETF’s. In 1999, his firm – Third Moment Trading – merged with a New York firm and the enterprise grew to over 70 employees on exchanges from San Francisco to New York. He left the firm in 2002, having achieved his initial goals and seeking to diversify his experience and interests in business.

In 2002, Nick and his wife dined at Trio for the first time, where Nick met chef Achatz. They had a brief conversation after an astounding meal which led to a quick collaboration to build what would become Alinea. In 2011, Nick and chef Achatz opened Next Restaurant, which won a James Beard Award for Best New Restaurant in the US in 2012. The Aviary and The Office helped redefine modern cocktail culture and won a James Beard Award for Outstanding Bar Program in the US in 2013. Roister followed in 2016.

Nick acted as the producer for the Alinea book, then co-authored Life on the Line with chef Achatz. The Alinea book won a James Beard Award and a Communications Arts Design Annual award. Life on the Line reached The New York Times Best Sellers list and has been optioned as a feature film by a major studio. Nick has published several articles on subverting the publishing industry and open-sourced the production of The Aviary Cocktail Book.

As an outsider to the restaurant industry, Nick’s approach to the business of restaurants is markedly innovative, and he has been featured in Businessweek, Fast Company, The New York Times and Crain’s Chicago Business, among other publications. He has given talks on innovation, entrepreneurship, and experience design across the country.

In 2014, Nick co-founded Tock, a reservation system now in use by restaurants in 51 cities in 14 countries. To date, Tock has processed over $200 million in pre-paid reservations, an industry first.

Nick lives in Chicago with his wife Dagmara and their two sons. They love to travel, golf, and still enjoy finding great new dining experiences around the world.

Stephen Bernacki

PARTNER

Steve studied business administration and art history at The University of Michigan. After graduating in 2006, he moved to Chicago to join Bain & Company as a management consultant. During his third year at Bain, he took advantage of the externship program to work for Danny Meyer’s Union Square Hospitality Group in New York City. At USHG, he fell in love with the hospitality business.

Steve emailed Nick Kokonas, co-owner of The Alinea Group. At that time, The Alinea Group was just Alinea and had no need for a business team. But Nick told Steve to keep in touch, and Steve routinely followed up with Nick.

Eventually, Steve wore Nick down. In 2009, he joined The Alinea Group as its first business team member. Steve quickly found that construction management was interesting, and Nick found that Steve’s attention to detail was invaluable.

Since then, Steve has built The Alinea Group’s business team to 16 members. He is now a partner in The Alinea Group.

When Steve is not in the office, you can find him cooking, dining out, or playing sports in leagues around the city.

Alex Hayes

CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER

Before joining The Alinea Group, Alex Hayes worked at Booz & Co. as a management consultant. His favorite projects focused on operations and food and beverage. Alex attended Northwestern University where he received a degree in Economics. When not at work, Alex is usually found riding his bike or cooking. His favorite dish to make is sous vide BBQ brisket.