Michael Beckman
Chef/Co-Owner, Workshop Kitchen + Bar
Age: 37
While popular chef and restaurateur Michael Beckman studied at the University of San Francisco, he fell in love with his Italian colleagues’ passion for food and wine.
“I moved to the French canton of Switzerland and traveled a lot in France, Germany, and Spain,” says Beckman, who later became a chef at The Ritz-Carlton, Berlin after studying in Lyon and apprenticing in Burgundy.
Beckman grew up in Orange County and moved to the desert to be the food and beverage director and private chef at Porcupine Creek.
“Eventually, I wanted to have my own restaurant,” says Beckman, who co-owns the hip eatery Workshop Kitchen + Bar. “Owning and operating a restaurant of Workshop’s caliber is a dream come true."
Beckman has been married to his wife, Grit, whom he met in Berlin, for eight years, and they are expecting their first baby, a girl, this month.
VIDEO: Find out what Michael Beckman studied in college.