Rising Star Chef Joe Truex of Watershed - Biography

Louisiana native (and 2007 Atlanta Rising Star Pastry Chef) Joe Truex earned his chops in kitchens in New Orleans and Las Vegas before attending The Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY. While enrolled, he trained under Chef Daniel Boulud at Le Cirque. After graduating, he moved to Switzerland to become chef de partie at the Swissotel Le Plaza in Basel. When Truex returned to New York, he took positions at The Peninsula Hotel and then with Fireman Hospitality Group, opening The Brooklyn Diner and The Redeye Grill. Truex worked as executive chef at The Cambridge Hotel in Cambridge, New York, then moved to Atlanta for a position as executive chef at the Swissotel, and then at Château Élan Winery and Resort in Braselton, GA.

Truex and his wife opened Repast in Atlanta in late 2005, a neighborhood restaurant whose menu was flecked with ingredients that reflected their international culinary background (his: European and French, hers: Japanese). Truex wore many hats there: co-executive chef, sommelier, manager, and pastry chef, on any given day. Currently Chef Truex is gearing up for the opening of Atlanta restaurant Watershed.