Matthew Kenney is an American

celebrity chef A celebrity chef is a kitchen chef who has become a celebrity. Today, chefs often become celebrities by presenting cookery advice and demonstrations, usually through the media of television and radio, or in Books, printed publications. While telev ...

, entrepreneur, author, and educator specializing in

plant-based A plant-based diet is a diet consisting mostly or entirely of plant-based foods. It encompasses a wide range of dietary patterns that contain low amounts of animal products and high amounts of fiber-rich plant products such as vegetables, ...

cuisine. He is the author of 12 cookbooks, founder of dozens of vegan restaurants, and founder of the companies Matthew Kenney Cuisine and Matthew Kenney Culinary, a

plant-based diet A plant-based diet is a diet consisting mostly or entirely of plant-based foods. It encompasses a wide range of dietary patterns that contain low amounts of animal products and high amounts of fiber-rich plant products such as vegetables ...

education business.

Early life and education

Kenney was born in the U.S. state of

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

, and grew up in

Searsport, Maine Searsport is an incorporated town and deep water seaport located at the confluence of the Penobscot River estuary and the Penobscot Bay immediately northwest of Sears Island and Cape Jellison in Waldo County, Maine, United States. The populat ...

. After graduating from the

University of Maine The University of Maine (UMaine) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Orono, Maine, United States. It was established in 1865 as the land-grant college of Maine and is the Flagship universitie ...

with a degree in political science, he became a chef."Plant-based Chef and Founder"
''Matthew Kenney Cuisine'' He attended the French Culinary Institute, now the

International Culinary Center The International Culinary Center (originally known as the French Culinary Institute) was a private for-profit culinary school from 1984 to 2020 headquartered in New York City, New York. The facilities included professional kitchens for hands-on ...

, learning classical culinary techniques. Upon graduating in 1990, he worked at various kitchens in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

Career

Kenney opened his namesake restaurant Matthew's in 1993 in New York City. He became ''

Food & Wine ''Food & Wine'' is an American monthly magazine published by Dotdash Meredith. It was founded in 1978 by Ariane and Michael Batterberry. It features recipes, cooking tips, travel information, restaurant reviews, chefs, wine pairings and sea ...

'' magazine's "1994 Best New Chef".M Elizabeth Sheldon, Matthew Kenney Academy
"Best Cooking Classes Around The World"
''Food and Wine'', Readers Choice Issue, January 2014 He opened the restaurants Mezze, MonzuRuth Reichl

''NY Times'', May 30, 1997 Canteen, Commune, and Commissary. Kenney has said the economic slump caused by the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks caused his restaurants to close. Between 2021 and 2024, at least 17 of Kenney's restaurants closed.

Pure Food and Wine

Kenney, partner

Sarma Melngailis Sarma Melngailis (born September 10, 1972) is an American chef, cookbook author, businesswoman and convicted criminal. She was the owner and co-founder of Pure Food and Wine and One Lucky Duck, both vegan raw foodism, raw food restaurants in New ...

and investor

Jeffrey Chodorow Jeffrey R. Chodorow (born March 2, 1950) is an American restaurateur, lawyer and financier. Early life and education Jeffrey Chodorow was born in the Bronx. His father died the year he was born, and he and his mother moved to Miami, Florida in 1 ...

in 2004 opened a

vegan Veganism is the practice of abstaining from the use of animal products and the consumption of animal source foods, and an associated philosophy that rejects the commodity status of animals. A person who practices veganism is known as a ve ...

restaurant, Pure Food and Wine, in

. Kenney left Pure Food and Wine in 2005, and the owner and manager sued him, alleging he broke his contract.

Culinary academy

In 2009, Kenney opened his first culinary academy in

Oklahoma City Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Oklahoma, most populous city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat ...

. In 2012, he moved the renamed Matthew Kenney Culinary Academy to

Santa Monica, California Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...

, and relocated his company to

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. In 2013, he established a campus of the Academy in Belfast, Maine. In 2017, he sold the Academy to Adam Zucker.

Matthew Kenney Cuisine

In 2012 Kenney formed Matthew Kenney Cuisine, a Los Angeles-based restaurant lifestyle company offering a variety of plant-based services and products, including hospitality, education, media, products and services. As of 2022, Matthew Kenney Cuisine operates more than 50 active restaurants, in more than 12 countries. In 2017, he was sued for unpaid rent at the popular Plant Food and Wine in Miami. In December 2017, he faced debt and foreclosure proceedings in Belfast, Maine, on a building that housed his former culinary academy. In 2019, Matthew Kenney Cuisine opened an all-vegan food hall Plant City in Providence, Rhode Island. In 2019, he launched Ntidote Life nutrition bars with Dr. Amir Marashi.

Legal issues

In 2022, the contents of Kenney's restaurant Sestina were auctioned off by the state of New York for unpaid taxes and the Double Zero in Boston was closed by sheriff deputies because of unpaid rent. His restaurant Plant Pub Fenway was evicted for unpaid rent, also in 2022. As of 2024, multiple lawsuits that allege fraud, illegal labor practices, harassment, or failing to pay creditors, landlords, and employees, have been filed against Kenney and his companies in at least nine states.

Restaurants

Active

Closed

Awards

* 1994:

, Best New Chef,

Published works

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kenney, Matthew Living people 20th-century American businesspeople 20th-century American male writers 21st-century American businesspeople 21st-century American male writers American cookbook writers American food company founders American chefs American male non-fiction writers American restaurateurs Businesspeople from Maine Businesspeople from New York City Chefs from Maine Chefs from New York City Founders of American schools and colleges People from Searsport, Maine Plant-based cookbook writers Plant-based diet advocates Raw foodists Restaurant founders University of Maine alumni Writers from Maine Writers from New York City Year of birth missing (living people)