Gordon Drysdale Chef Profile

About me

Gordon Drysdale brings three decades of experience to his role as Chef/Partner at Bacchus Management and Executive Chef of Pizza Antica. He has been a longtime fixture in the Bay Area dining scene with a reputation for modern, seasonal cuisine with classic roots. It was this approach to cooking that earned him Esquire Magazine’s “Best New Restaurant Award” in 2000 for his celebrated Gordon’s House of Fine Eats. In addition, Chef Drysdale is heading up two more restaurant concepts in conjunction with Bacchus Management Group to open in 2008 – Mayfield Bakery & Café in Palo Alto as well as Café des Amis in San Francisco’s Cow Hollow neighborhood.

At Pizza Antica, Drysdale has developed a menu of California-inspired Italian food specializing in thin crust Roman-style pizza. Drysdale allows the seasons to be his guide, creating pizzas using fresh, local ingredients. Award winning pizza along with entrees, salads and house-made desserts has made Pizza Antica, now four restaurants strong and growing, a tremendous success.

Drysdale began his restaurant career as a dishwasher at the age of 16 and hasn’t left the kitchen since. Although initially drawn to the buzz of a busy commercial kitchen, it was the creativity of cooking that really attracted him. As someone who spent the better part of his teens in the high school art room, Drysdale appreciated the artistic aspects of the culinary world. Following high school, he brought together his attraction to the kitchen with his creative pursuits by enrolling in the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY.

After completing the culinary academy, Drysdale worked for the Sheraton Grand Hotel, a four star, four diamond hotel in downtown Los Angeles. In 1988 Drysdale moved to the Bay Area and worked under the tutelage of Cindy Pawlcyn, founder of Real Restaurants Group. It was there where he learned to appreciate the flavor of food as much as its artistry. Drysdale went on to become the opening chef and later a partner in critically acclaimed Bix in San Francisco.

Working with Real Restaurants is where Drysdale first experienced the finer points of a restaurant as he was actively involved in the opening of acclaimed restaurants such as the Buckeye Roadhouse in Mill Valley and Caffé Museo at the Museum of Modern Art in San Francisco. Nationally he assisted in the openings of the Buckhead Roadhouse in Chattanooga, TN and Ajax Tavern in Aspen, CO. Drysdale was also one of the founding partners of Pan-O-Rama Bakery.

Along the way Drysdale was putting awards under his belt. In 1981 he entered into the Culinary Federation Culinary Competition where he walked away with several top awards.

He also won the prestigious Presidents Award, given out by Sheraton Hotels, beating out 1,500 other competitors for his work at Ravel Restaurant.

Drysdale opened Gordon’s House of Fine Eats in 1999 to rave reviews and a packed house. His innovative take on classic American cuisine translated into a menu of comforting old childhood favorites executed with inventive new twists. A few years later Drysdale joined Pizza Antica, where he is currently in charge of overseeing the kitchens of each location. He has contributed his own distinct sensibility to the partnership, fine-tuning the concept and developing a pizza that is unique to the restaurant. The food, both casual and sophisticated, matches the comfortable, convivial atmosphere that makes Pizza Antica so inviting.

Drysdale’s next projects include Mayfield Bakery & Café in Palo Alto and Café des Amis on San Francisco’s trendy Union Street. Mayfield Bakery & Café is a full service bakery and 80-seat café serving simple, rustic American fare. It will also supply bread to all Bacchus restaurants in addition to selling the groups’ proprietary coffee beans. In winter 2008, Drysdale and Bacchus will introduce Café des Amis, a Parisian-style brasserie that serves early morning fresh baked pastries and stays open late offering the city’s best steak frites.

Drysdale lives in Mill Valley with his wife Susie and two sons.