Adam Shepard ‘97 is executive chef of historic Brooklyn, New York oyster and chop house, Gage & Tollner. Having spent his childhood gardening, fishing, and lobstering in Coastal Maine, Adam found himself gravitating towards food from a young age and landed his first restaurant job in high school cooking for Jean Luis Palladin protégé chef David Grant. This auspicious start to his career eventually led to principal roles within New York City’s most prominent kitchens, including BOND ST, Union Pacific, Tavern on the Green, and the opening of his proprietary restaurants Taku and Lunetta. At Gage & Tollner, he has led the restaurant to critical acclaim since reopening in April 2021, earning a James Beard Award nomination for Best New Restaurant (2022, semifinalist), and claiming spots on coveted lists including Bon Appetit's 50 Best Restaurants (2022), Esquire's Best New Restaurants (2021), The New York Times' 50 Best Restaurants in the US (2021), New York Magazine's 12 Best Restaurants (2021), and more. When Adam is not at the restaurant, he’s either pickling something, hanging with his family, or riding his bicycle all over the Northeast. @gage.and.tollner (Instagram)