A renowned chef and award-winning cookbook author, Michel Nischan is an avid proponent of sustainable farming, local and regional food systems, and heritage recipes.

Credited with creating a " cuisine of well being," his culinary focus is pure and simple. His ingredients are flavorful because they are:

• Local or regional
• Organic
• Grown or fished from sustainable sources
• Not processed 

Michel's "cuisine of well being" has become a movement in dining, in cooking and in life.

The Beginnings

The son of southern farmers, Michel grew up helping his mother in her garden and eating simple, fresh, home-cooked food.

He began his career in the Midwest, where he earned his stripes in several top Chicago restaurants. His work eventually led him to Connecticut, where in 1990, he opened the acclaimed Miche Mache in Norwalk.

In 1994, when Chris, his five-year-old son, was diagnosed with juvenile diabetes, Michel, along with his wife Lori, came to a stark realization. "It made me realize that floating on foie gras and bathing in butter might not be in the best interest of my customers," he remembers.

In 1995, he joined Myriad Restaurant Group's TriBeCa Grill. As Corporate Chef for Myriad, he went on to open and influence cuisine of four hotel projects, including, in 1997, the acclaimed Heartbeat, at W Hotel, in Manhattan.

A Sustainable Vision

Introducing his revolutionary cuisine at Heartbeat propelled Michel to the forefront of New York's culinary scene. He began to work closely with the City Harvest and other city green markets to source the restaurant's produce from regional and New York state producers.

As his connection to local food systems grew—and his desire, his vision to create a larger community connecting those systems grew with it.

Since then, Michel has continued to raise the bar for delicious and healthful cooking. He is dedicated to creating systems of local, sustainable and culturally significant food delivery that reflect our food heritage and provide healthier agricultural and eating habits for the future.

Dressing Room, A Homegrown Restaurant … and a Movement

Through his advocacy for a more healthful, organic and sustainable food future, Michel met Nell Newman, the driving force behind Newman's Own Organics®. Nell introduced Michel to her father, Paul, who wanted to open a restaurant.

Michel and Paul Newman found their beliefs on food, family and community to be remarkably aligned, and The Dressing Room, A Homegrown Restaurant evolved as the place where their shared values found expression.

With the opening of The Dressing Room, A Homegrown Restaurant , adjacent to the Westport Country Playhouse in 2006, Michel Nischan starts a new chapter in his ongoing story about the love of local food and the people who produce it.

Dressing Room isn't just a restaurant. It's:

• the impetus for the Westport Farmers Market, now in its second season and at two locations.
• the epicenter of a local, sustainable, culturally-significant food movement: Wholesome Wave Foundation Charitable Ventures.
• the inspiration for Staples High School's Edible Mentorship Program.
• the home base for Wholesome Wave Foundation's innovative events and programs.

Local View, Global Reach

As Michel expands his vision, his reach expands with it.

In 2006, in collaboration with Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces, Michel created PURE, a groundbreaking restaurant concept in India. The restaurant, in Taj Land End, Bandra, Mumbai, is dedicated serving food that satisfies the palate while restoring the body and soul, will open in the Taj Land End in Bandra, Mumbai in May 2006.

PURE is based on Michel's "wellness" recipes, menus he developed at Heartbeat in New York City, along with John Mooney.

PURE will be the first Western well-being restaurant ever opened in India as well as the first high-end dining establishment opened there in collaboration with a well-known Western chef.

Making the Connection

In order to ensure his community grows, Michel works tirelessly with the most enlightened and thoughtful people in food and well-being in the world, including, to name a few:

• His Holiness, the Dalai Lama,
• Betsy and Jesse Fink, and Annie Farrell of Millstone Farm in Wilton
• The Chefs Collaborative
• Harvard Medical School's The Center for Health and the Global Environment
• Gus Schumacher, former Undersecretary of Agriculture
• Michael Batterberry, Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Food Arts and organizer of the New American Farmers Initiative (NAFI),
• The Amazon Conservation Team
• The W.K. Kellogg Foundation's Food and Society Conference

Home

Michel and Lori live in Fairfield, Connecticut and have five kids— Lauren, Courtney, Christopher, Ethan, and Andrew— a dog named Lady Jane, and a really big garden.

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