Barton Seaver (born April 12, 1979) is an author, speaker and chef. He works and resides in the state of Maine.
Early years
Seaver grew up in Washington, D.C. and attended
St. Albans School. He graduated with honors from
The Culinary Institute of America
The Culinary Institute of America (CIA) is a private culinary school with its primary campus in Hyde Park, New York, and branch campuses in St. Helena and Napa, California; San Antonio, Texas; and Singapore. The college, which was the firs ...
in
Hyde Park, New York
Hyde Park is a town in Dutchess County, New York, United States, bordering the Hudson River north of Poughkeepsie. Within the town are the hamlets of Hyde Park, East Park, Staatsburg, and Haviland. Hyde Park is known as the hometown of Frankl ...
, in 2001 and taught meat and fish classes on a fellowship post under the guidance of chef Corky Clark. He worked in restaurants in Chicago and New York, and then traveled abroad to southern Spain and Morocco, where he worked with local villagers on fishing boats and in small family-run hotel restaurants.
Career
Culinary
In 2005, Seaver returned to Washington, D.C., and worked with chef
José Andrés
José Ramón Andrés Puerta (born 13 July 1969) is a Spanish chef, and founder of World Central Kitchen (WCK), a non-profit devoted to providing meals in the wake of natural disasters. A Spanish-born and raised cook, he is often credited with b ...
at the restaurant Jaleo. Seaver became executive chef of Café Saint-Ex and later its sister restaurant, Bar Pilar. He was chef-owner of the sustainable seafood restaurant Hook in
Georgetown in 2007. Over the course of one year, Hook served 78 species of seafood. In addition, Seaver helped launch the casual seafood eatery Tackle Box. Seaver left Hook in 2008. He became chef of a new restaurant in the
Glover Park
Glover Park is a neighborhood in northwest Washington, D.C., about a half mile north of Georgetown and just west of the United States Naval Observatory and Number One Observatory Circle (the Vice President's mansion). Every morning and evening, ...
neighborhood called Blue Ridge in 2009. His work at Blue Ridge led
John Mariani
John is a common English name and surname:
* John (given name)
* John (surname)
John may also refer to:
New Testament
Works
* Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John
* First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John
* Second ...
of
Esquire Magazine
''Esquire'' is an American men's magazine. Currently published in the United States by Hearst Communications, it also has more than 20 international editions.
Founded in 1933, it flourished during the Great Depression and World War II under t ...
to name Seaver the 2009 Chef of the Year. The designation polarized restaurant critics.
Seaver left Blue Ridge in early 2010 to work on other projects. His plans for a combination sustainable seafood market and restaurant in
Logan Circle to be called Diamond District Seafood Company were put on hold indefinitely in 2010 due to problems with the location. In 2012, Seaver was named by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to the United States Culinary Ambassador Corps.
Sustainability
Seaver shifted his focus away from the restaurant business and toward promoting
sustainability
Specific definitions of sustainability are difficult to agree on and have varied in the literature and over time. The concept of sustainability can be used to guide decisions at the global, national, and individual levels (e.g. sustainable livi ...
, wellness, and community as they relate to food. He sat on the board of the hunger-fighting organization
D.C. Central Kitchen until 2013 and was a fellow with the Blue Ocean Institute. He also has collaborations with the School Nutrition Association and Future of Fish. Seaver received a Seafood Champion Award from
Seafood Choices Alliance
The Seafood Choices Alliance was a program of the nonprofit ocean conservation organization, SeaWeb. It was established in 2001 to bring together the disparate elements and diverse approaches in a growing "seafood choices" movement in the United ...
in 2008. He is a member of the board of L.A. Kitchen.
University of New England
In 2016, Seaver was a Senior Advisor, Sustainable Seafood Innovations at the University of New England.
The Center for Health and the Global Environment
Seaver is currently the Director of the Sustainable Seafood and Health Initiative at the Center for Health and the Global Environment at the
Harvard School of Public Health
The Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health is the public health school of Harvard University, located in the Longwood Medical Area of Boston, Massachusetts. The school grew out of the Harvard- MIT School for Health Officers, the nation's firs ...
in Boston, Massachusetts.
New England Aquarium
In 2012, Seaver became the first Sustainability Fellow in Residence.
National Geographic
Seaver became a
National Geographic
''National Geographic'' (formerly the ''National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as NAT GEO) is a popular American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. Known for its photojournalism, it is one of the most widely ...
fellow in 2010. He developed a list of ocean friendly substitutes for popular yet depleted seafood species, and co-created the Seafood Decision Guide for consumers which evaluates seafood based on health and environmental factors. He also hosts the National Geographic Web series Cook-Wise. and is a regular contributing guest on National Geographic Weekend with Boyd Matson.
Writing
Seaver has written opinion pieces for Seafood Business News, Treehugger,
Stop Smiling
''Stop Smiling'' was an arts and culture magazine founded by J. C. Gabel in the Chicago suburb of Darien, Illinois. He started the magazine at age 19 in 1995. The magazine was published on a bimonthly basis. The headquarters was in both Chicago a ...
magazine and StarChefs.com. He blogs for National Geographic's Ocean Views page. His first book, For Cod and Country: Simple, Delicious, Sustainable Cooking (
Sterling Epicure, 2011) is a cookbook of seasonal, environmentally responsible seafood and vegetable recipes. His second book, Where There's Smoke: Simple, Delicious, Sustainable Grilling (
Sterling Epicure, 2013) is a cookbook focused on grilling and entertaining. It was nominated by the International Association of Culinary Professionals in 2014 in the "Food Matters" category as a finalist in their prestigious annual cookbook awards. In 2014, he released Foods for Health and the National Geographic Kid's Cookbook, both published by National Geographic. In 2016, he published Two If By Sea with Sterling Epicure. His most recent book, American Seafood: Heritage, Culture & Cookery From Sea to Shining Sea is a seminal reference on every aspect of American seafood. Barton is a Contributing Seafood Editor at Coastal Living Magazine.
Speaking
In 2010, Seaver delivered a
TED Talk
TED Conferences, LLC (Technology, Entertainment, Design) is an American-Canadian non-profit media organization that posts international talks online for free distribution under the slogan "ideas worth spreading". TED was founded by Richard Sau ...
on sustainable seafood aboard the National Geographic Endeavour as part of a conference-at-sea conceived by TED Prize winner and Mission Blue founder Dr.
Sylvia Earle as part of the Mission Blue Voyage. On June 16, 2014, Seaver addressed the U.S. Department of State’s Our Ocean Conference in Washington, D.C., hosted by Secretary of State John Kerry. He also prepared the menu which featured underutilized species of fish from his home state of Maine.
Television
In addition to his web-series with National Geographic titled Cook-Wise, Seaver has also hosted and appeared on a number of other television programs. In April 2010, he was interviewed for Anderson Cooper 360 on the topic of seafood scarcity. He also hosted a 3-part television series on the Ovation Network titled In Search of Food in 2011. In 2013, he appeared on the PBS program Moveable Feast.
Personal life
Seaver lives in Maine with his wife Carrie Anne and their son.
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References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Seaver, Barton
1979 births
American chefs
American male chefs
Living people
Culinary Institute of America Hyde Park alumni
St. Albans School (Washington, D.C.) alumni