17 Facts About Nancy Silverton

Nancy Silverton was born on June 20,1954 and is an American chef, baker, restaurateur, and author.

The winner of the James Beard Foundation's Outstanding Chef Award in 2014, Silverton is recognized for her role in popularizing sourdough and artisan breads in the United States.

Nancy Silverton grew up in Sherman Oaks and Encino, in Southern California's San Fernando Valley.

Nancy Silverton enrolled at Sonoma State University as a political science major and decided to become a chef in her freshman year after she had what she later described as an epiphany.

Nancy Silverton dropped out of Sonoma State in her senior year, and decided to train formally as a chef at Le Cordon Bleu in London.

Nancy Silverton served as the head baker at the bakery and the head pastry chef at the restaurant, which was located on La Brea Avenue in the Hancock Park area of Los Angeles.

Nancy Silverton had limited experience from baking bread while a pastry chef at Spago and began to experiment with recipes after she read an article about a San Francisco artisan bakery, Acme.

Nancy Silverton would bake bread all night, sleep briefly, wake mid-morning to prepare pastries and desserts for the restaurant, and nap again before dinner.

Nancy Silverton became less involved with the bakery in 1993, serving mainly as an advisor.

In 1998, Nancy Silverton began "Grilled Cheese Night" at Campanile, which became an establishment in Los Angeles.

Nancy Silverton earned more than $5 million in the sale, and invested with Bernard Madoff; her profits were lost in 2008 with the collapse of his pyramid scheme.

In 2005, she and Peel separated, and Nancy Silverton left Campanile after their divorce in 2007.

In 2007, Nancy Silverton partnered with Joseph Bastianich and his family's restaurant group to open Pizzeria Mozza on the corner of Melrose Ave and Highland Ave in Los Angeles, California.

Similar to its Los Angeles location, Nancy Silverton opened Pizzeria Mozza Newport Beach in 2012.

Nancy Silverton opened a casual Italian restaurant specializing in small pizzas in the fall of 2019 in Culver City, California called Pizzette.

Nancy Silverton was named Culinary Ambassador of the new Farmhouse food and event space in Ojai, California, in early 2019.

Nancy Silverton has been a member of the Macy's Culinary Council since 2003 and is involved in the Meals on Wheels programs in Chicago, New York, and Los Angeles.