Chef Benjamin Browning Joins The Dining Room At Kendall College

The School of Culinary Arts at Kendall College announces the arrival of Chef Benjamin Browning as the evening chef in the upscale Dining Room.

Browning, most recently executive chef at Landmark Grill + Lounge in Chicago, brings to Kendall College his dedication to practicing simple Midwestern cuisine deep-rooted in classical technique and utilizing "all the local ingredients the community has to offer."

In addition to managing the Dining Room's kitchen and contemporary American menu featuring elevated comfort dishes, Browning will instruct culinary-arts students gaining practical experience cooking and serving in the 80-seat public restaurant.

"Sharing of my craft has always been first and foremost," Browning says. "It's the way I've managed my kitchens, gaining the respect of my team while producing great food. It may sound clich�, but I have always taken education and the future of my industry very seriously, and would like nothing more than for our future chefs to be humble, respectful and knowledgeable about what they are doing and how they affect a community. I expect this to be rewarding because of the look on that young cook's face when he or she truly 'gets it.' It's a very powerful experience."

A native of Holland, Mich., Browning graduated from Grand Rapids Community College with a degree in culinary arts, earning the program's prestigious Director's Award for superior academic performance. Throughout his training, Browning worked in professional kitchens, beginning as a line cook and then sous chef and, after graduation, executive chef in area establishments. His education continued overseas in Troon, Scotland, where he studied classical cuisine at the Royal Highlands Hotel, and in Malta, where he won two of many gold metals earned during his competition years.

Browning relocated to Chicago in 2003 to become executive sous chef at now-closed mk north in Northfield, Ill., under chef/owner Michael Kornick. Two years later, he was named executive chef of La Tache French Bistro, and from there took over the kitchen of acclaimed Lincoln Park eatery Landmark Grill + Lounge, where he ran micro-seasonal menus to incorporate the freshest ingredients from Midwestern farms. Indeed, throughout his career, Browning has dedicated himself to working closely with local farmers. "For me, buying local isn't a trend," he says, "It's simply the right way to live and eat."

Browning joins The Dining Room six months after it earned distinction as a Certified Green Restaurant�-currently the only certified-green restaurant operating in any culinary school-by the Boston-based Green Restaurant Association. Through his personal relationships with farmers, Browning understands the care that goes into producing each ingredient that arrives in his kitchen, and is dedicated to preparing dishes with the same attention to detail, reflected in such starters as roasted-winter-squash soup with apple butter and a thyme cracker and main-course offerings such as soy-braised beef short rib with buckwheat polenta and grilled Swiss chard.

"My goal at Kendall is to impress upon students humility, refinement, integrity, dedication and fire within themselves," he says. "For guests, I want them to experience true farm-to-table cooking."

The Dining Room at Kendall College, at 900 N. North Branch Street on Chicago's Goose Island, serves dinner Tuesday through Saturday until Dec. 6; lunch, under the direction of Chef Peggy Ryan, is served Monday through Friday through Dec. 5. For reservations, call (312) 752-2EAT or e-mail diningroom@kendall.edu. To view lunch and dinner menus, visit www.kendall.edu.

About Kendall College
Founded in 1985, Kendall College's S