James Alefantis is an American

chef A chef is a trained professional cook and tradesman who is proficient in all aspects of food preparation, often focusing on a particular cuisine. The word "chef" is derived from the term ''chef de cuisine'' (), the director or head of a kitche ...

and

restaurateur A restaurateur is a person who opens and runs restaurants professionally. Although over time the term has come to describe any person who owns a restaurant, traditionally it refers to a highly skilled professional who is proficient in all aspec ...

. He founded and owns two restaurants in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, including the pizzeria

Comet Ping Pong Comet Ping Pong (often abbreviated as Comet) is a pizzeria, restaurant, and concert venue located on Connecticut Avenue in Washington, D.C.'s Chevy Chase neighborhood. Owned by James Alefantis, Comet has received critical acclaim from ''The W ...

, and American restaurant Buck's Fishing & Camping. He is also the president of the art gallery Transformer in Logan Circle, Washington, D.C. In 2012, '' GQ'' named him one of the 50 most powerful people in Washington, D.C.

Biography

Alefantis was raised in

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from South ...

and Washington, D.C. Prior to becoming a restaurateur, he owned a small art gallery in

Georgetown, Virginia Georgetown is an unincorporated community in Northumberland County, in the U.S. state of Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between th ...

, and served as the general manager of Johnny's Half Shell for two years. He founded Buck's Fishing & Camping in October 2003 along with Carole Greenwood. Originally, the restaurant was called "Greenwood", and she was the restaurant's chef and he was its owner. Alefantis has said that he and Greenwood collaborated on every item on the menu at Buck's. In 2006, he and Greenwood co-founded Comet Ping Pong, and in 2009 after Greenwood stepped away for the businesses Alefantis hired Vickie Reh to be chef at Bucks and Laura Bonino to be head chef at Comet Pizza . Alafantis is also a partner in Muchas Gracias, a Mexican restaurant in Washington, DC.

Personal life

Alefantis is openly gay. He formerly dated

David Brock David Brock (born July 23, 1962) is an American liberal political consultant, author, and commentator who founded the media watchdog group Media Matters for America. He has been described by ''Time'' as "one of the most influential operatives in ...

, the CEO of

Media Matters for America Media Matters for America (MMfA) is a politically left-leaning 501(c)(3), nonprofit organization and media watchdog group. MMfA was founded in 2004 by journalist and political activist David Brock as a counterweight to the conservative Media Res ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Alefantis, James American restaurateurs Living people Businesspeople from Washington, D.C. American LGBT businesspeople Businesspeople from Buffalo, New York Place of birth missing (living people) Year of birth missing (living people) Gay businessmen