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[meet the team]

 

...one of chef aj richards' fondest and furthest memories was cooking alongside his grandfather. being the only child of a single mother, his grandfather was his father figure. chef aj will admit that grandpa was not a good cook, by any means. however, he had a way of making eating an experience, and chef aj hopes to do the same with his guests. 

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... the culinary team at [forged] uses a unique, yet seemingly appropriate approach to their menus. instead of creating a menu and sourcing the ingredients, the chefs meet frequently with their farmers to be aware of the current growing season. once the chefs know what will be fresh and seasonally available,  the creating starts. 

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... the old 1873 historic courthouse has such great architecture and a vast amount of space that the team decided to use all of the nooks and crannies. there are four dining options at [forged].

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...every team member at [forged] is an integral piece of the puzzle. we certainly can not mention them all here, so we figured we would introduce the two masterminds behind the menu creations.

AJ Richards, CEC 

[executive chef/owner]

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chef aj is a transplant from Syracuse. he had no "formal" culinary training in the beginning and likes to tell people he learned from the school of hard knocks. chef started out as a dishwasher and worked his way through the ranks. today he is the executive chef of his own restaurant. he is a certified executive chef through the american culinary federation, as well as holding the treasurer position with the organization.

 

in 2017 chef aj returned home from Chicago working under 3 michelin star chef grant achatz (check it out on Chefs Table on Netflix). chef aj is a member of the albany chaine des rotisseurs, as well as a mondiale du vin member. chef believes that in order to keep living you must keep learning. he is currently pursuing his aspirations to be a sommelier and has completed level one through the court of master sommeliers. chef is also a level one cicerone. chef aj is an award winning chef, named Albany Food and Wine's Rising Star Chef in 2017, being the only chef to EVER score a perfect score on his tasting.

 

chef believes that good food is a fundamental human right and constantly works to push himself and his team to the edge. the culinary team at [forged] accepts the challenge of creating inspiring and innovated dishes while sourcing ingredients as locally as possible.

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Chef David MacIntosh

[chef de cuisine]

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chef dave began his culinary career at a small greek restaurant which ignited his passion for the industry.  In 2014 he attended suny adirondack under the tutelage of program director chef matt bolton.  in 2016 he graduated from the program at suny adirondack with a degree in culinary arts.  after graduating chef dave began cooking at a variety of local restaurants ranging form lake george to albany. chef dave also spent a short time in tennessee learning southern cooking styles and techniques. in january of 2018 he completed a stage with blue hill at stone barns under james beard award winning chef dan barber, where he was influenced greatly by a dedication to sustainability in the kitchen. chef dave is currently a nominee for the 2018 albany food and wine rising star chef.    

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