Chef Eldad Shem Tov of Glasserie - Biography

Brooklyn, NY

February 2015

In every step of his life, Israel native Eldad Shem Tov has found himself in the kitchen. He worked as a cook during his mandated time in the Israeli army, and then subsidized his way through art school by working in food. It was only while studying advanced photography at the School of Visual Arts in New York City that Shem Tov finally gave in to his culinary curiosity and enrolled at The French Culinary Institute [now the International Culinary Center]. A line of prominent stages and jobs soon followed, including Alain Ducasse, Per Se, and wd~50.

Shem Tov eventually travelled back to Israel to open a restaurant, Shakuf, drawing on his training at Noma and helping put Tel Aviv on the culinary map. When Shakuf closed, Shem Tov made the move back to the Big Apple, and was tapped to assume the position of executive chef at Glasserie in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. Its Middle East- and Mediterranean-inspired menu speaks to the Israeli chef, who fuses his deep understanding of traditional flavors with the disciplines and aesthetics of Danish cuisine. At Glasserie, Shem Tov celebrates seasonal ingredients with an artistically organic and rustic approach—the only way a photographer-turned-chef could.

Photo credit: Daniel Tchetchik