David Bouley, Award-Winning NYC Chef, Dies At 70

Acclaimed New York City chef David Bouley has died at the age of 70, following a heart attack in his home in Kent, Connecticut, according to AP. Bouley was known for his unique approach to French cuisine: He was among several famed chefs (also including Daniel Boulud and Jean-Georges Vongerichten) considered to have ushered in the New American style of cuisine, which changed the way that Americans eat. It merged classic dishes and techniques — often drawing on classic French food — with local, high-quality American products.

Bouley was born in Storrs, Connecticut, and his early exposure to his grandparents' farm and their French background (they immigrated to the U.S. in the 1920s) sparked an early interest in food. Bouley traveled to Europe, where he honed his skills by working with famed chefs like Joël Robuchon and Paul Bocuse. He later returned to New York and worked in lauded French restaurants in the city, such as Le Périgord and Le Cirque. He rose to prominence as a chef at Montrachet in 1985, helping to establish the city's TriBeCa area as an up-and-coming culinary neighborhood. He then went on to open his own eponymous restaurant, Bouley, in 1987, which went on to rank as Zagat's number-one restaurant in the city for five years in a row.

At Bouley, the chef developed a reputation for shunning typical symbols of fine dining like truffles, while introducing a more Japanese-style approach that prominently featured local vegetables. He also stepped away from traditional French approaches, replacing heavy ingredients like butter with sharper flavors in the form of juices and vinegars. As a nod to this approach, he was also well-known for stacking apples near his restaurant doors, so the fresh scent would welcome diners.

David Bouley went on to open other establishments in New York, including Bouley Bakery, which doubled as a base for Red Cross relief operations following the 9/11 attacks. He also opened Danube, which once earned two Michelin stars for its creative Austrian cuisine. 

Later on, he stepped more towards Japanese cuisine. In 2011, Bouley's restaurant, Brushstroke, opened in tandem with Japan's Tsuji Culinary Institute. His fusion of Japanese and French foods helped lead to Bouley's award as the first American to be named a "goodwill ambassador" for Japanese cuisine. In the last decade, Bouley became a firm advocate for the role of quality food in nutrition, launching a celebrated dinner series where he would host prominent medical experts for lectures on a variety of food-related topics.

Bouley is survived by his wife, Nicole Bartelme.