Patrick Dean Clark (March 17, 1955 – February 11, 1998) was an American chef. He won the 1994

James Beard Foundation The James Beard Foundation is an American non-profit culinary arts organization based in New York City. It was named after James Beard, a food writer, teacher, and cookbook author. Its programs include guest-chef dinners to scholarships for asp ...

award for "Best Chef: Mid-Atlantic Region" during his tenure at the Hay-Adams Hotel, Washington, D.C. and also competed in the 1997 Iron Chef. Clark is credited with having been the first chef 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 ...

to mix fine-dining and bistro at The Odeon in Tribeca, as well as also having been one of the first American chefs to apply French technique to growing American regional cuisine in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

Early life

Clark was born in

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

, the son of Melvin, also a chef, and Idella. He was raised in Canarsie, a residential neighborhood in Brooklyn, New York. He trained and worked in Britain and France, notably with three-star chef Michel Guérard.

Career

In 1988, he opened his own restaurant, Metro, on the Upper East Side. It closed in 1990 and he went to work at Bice in

Beverly Hills Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. A notable and historic suburb of Los Angeles, it is located just southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Beverly Hil ...

. He soon returned to the East Coast, taking over the kitchen at the Hay–Adams Hotel. In 1995, he returned to New York City to become

Executive chef A chef de cuisine (, French language, French for ''head of kitchen'') or head chef is a chef that Supervisor, leads a kitchen and its cooks. A chef patron (feminine form ''chef patronne'') (French for ''boss chef'') or executive chef is a chef ...

at Tavern on the Green. He has been hailed as "one of the greatest American culinary stars of the last half-century" Chef

Anthony Bourdain Anthony Michael Bourdain ( ; June 25, 1956 – June 8, 2018) was an American celebrity chef, author and Travel documentary, travel documentarian. He starred in programs focusing on the exploration of international culture, cuisine, and the huma ...

describes the impression he made: "Patrick for sure impressed the hell out of us. He was kind of famous; he was big and black; most importantly he was ''American'', not some cheese-eating, surrender specialist Froggie. Patrick Clark, whether he would have appreciated it or not, was our home-town hero, our

Joe DiMaggio Joseph Paul DiMaggio (; born Giuseppe Paolo DiMaggio, ; November 25, 1914 – March 8, 1999), nicknamed "Joltin' Joe", "the Yankee Clipper" and "Joe D.", was an American professional baseball center fielder who played his entire 13-year career ...

– a shining example that ''it could be done''."

Personal life

In 1979, he married Lynette. The couple had five children: two sons, Preston and Cameron, and three daughters, Aleia, Ashley, and Brooke. Preston is also an award-winning chef. At the time of his death, he and his family were living in Plainsboro Township, New Jersey.

Death

Clark died of amyloidosis, a rare blood disease, on February 11, 1998, at the Princeton Medical Center in

Princeton, New Jersey The Municipality of Princeton is a Borough (New Jersey), borough in Mercer County, New Jersey, United States. It was established on January 1, 2013, through the consolidation of the Borough of Princeton, New Jersey, Borough of Princeton and Pri ...

. He was 42. His wife and their five children survived him.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Clark, Patrick 1955 births 1998 deaths American male chefs American restaurateurs People from Canarsie, Brooklyn People from Plainsboro Township, New Jersey 20th-century American businesspeople James Beard Foundation Award winners Chefs from New York City Chefs from New Jersey Chefs from Washington, D.C. Deaths from amyloidosis 20th-century African-American businesspeople