BLOOMFIELD HILLS, Mich. — Chef and author George Vutetakis learned “the language of food” as a young boy in his Greek grandmother’s kitchen. It was there that he was first exposed to the value of cultural traditions in cooking. His discoveries later continued with his travels to India, where he learned traditional food preparation methods. Whether he’s discussing vegetarian cultures and traditions (he studied in India as a teenager), the benefits of green papaya (it’s a good source for papain, a natural digestive enzyme), or countertops (the more, the better), for Vutetakis the bottom line is quality.
Vutetakis is an award-winning vegan chef/restaurateur who has been an integral part of the plant-based food revolution since the early 1980s. His business acumen and entrepreneurial approach have brought success to many projects. In addition to his consulting company site, http://vegtraditions.com/, he shares his vast food knowledge and delicious vegan recipes on his popular blog and his cookbook, Vegetarian Traditions: Favorite Recipes From My Years at the Legendary Inn Season Cafe.
He is a leader in plant-based food manufacturing and regenerative soil-to-shelf applications. He has broad experience with scaled consumer packaged goods (CPG) ecosystems and vertically integrated agriculture-to-consumer product design, as well as multi-process food design for thermal, cold-chain and food service applications.
Using time-honored techniques as his guide, he weaves the Mediterranean and Indian flavors of his youth into many of his extraordinary plant-based dishes. His reputation as a leader in the creation of delicious, healthy, and innovative vegetarian cuisine using fresh, unadulterated ingredients flourished as chef and owner at the award-winning Inn Season Cafe in Royal Oak, Michigan. After nearly two decades, he sold the restaurant and began writing and teaching.
At the time, Vutetakis delved into the restoration and renovation of historic homes, taught Food is Medicine programs with cardiologist Dr. Michael Dangovian, and launched his website/blog featuring stories and incredible vegan recipes. In 2011, Jack Aronson of Garden Fresh Gourmet, the largest fresh salsa company in the world, hired him as director of research and development. This led to plant-based product development and design across the packaged-food industry.
As an industry consultant under CJB and Associates, and co-founder of Chef-to-Shelf, and Vegano Foods, he has worked as a cross-platform consultant specializing in clean label, organic, and plant-based products. For information, go to: http://vegtraditions.com/chef-george
