14 Facts About Jacques Torres

Jacques Torres was born on 14 June 1959 and is a French pastry chef and chocolatier based in New York.

Jacques Torres was born in Algiers and grew up in Bandol, a fishing village in the South of France.

When Jacques Torres was 15 years old, he began an apprenticeship at a small pastry shop and completed his apprenticeship requirements in two years, graduating first in his class.

In 1986, Jacques Torres was the youngest person ever to win the Meilleur Ouvrier Patissier de France competition.

Jacques Torres moved to the United States, and in 1988 he served as the Corporate Pastry Chef for the Ritz Carlton Hotel Company before moving on to Le Cirque, where he worked for 11 years as Executive Pastry Chef.

Jacques Torres joined the faculty of the International Culinary Center in 1993, and after designing the Classic Pastry Arts Curriculum in 1996, he became the school's Dean of Pastry Arts.

In 2000, Jacques Torres left Le Cirque to open a chocolate factory and retail shop in Brooklyn, New York.

Currently, there are eight Jacques Torres shops, including one chocolate factory in the Brooklyn Army Terminal and an ice cream shop in Grand Central Terminal.

In March 2017 Jacques Torres opened New York City's first chocolate museum, named Choco-Story New York.

In 2007, Jacques Torres married chocolatier Hasty Khoei, who formerly worked under Jacques Torres in his chocolate factory.

Jacques Torres's awards include the James Beard Foundation Pastry Chef of the Year, Meilleur Ouvrier de France, the Chefs of America Pastry Chef of the Year, and Chartreuse Pastry Chef of the Year.

Jacques Torres is a member of the Academie Culinaire de France, and in 2003 the James Beard Foundation inducted him into the Who's Who of Food and Beverage in America.

Chocolate with Jacques Torres is a North American television cooking show hosted by Jacques Torres.

Jacques Torres often describes techniques viewers can use to make their own at home.