Dominique Leach
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Dominique Leach | |
|---|---|
| Born | |
| Education | Illinois Institute of Art – Chicago |
| Culinary career | |
| Cooking style | Barbecue |
Current restaurant(s)
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Dominique Leach is the owner and chef of Lexington Betty's Smokehouse in Chicago. She has been featured on food television programs, including Chopped, Fire Masters, and BBQ Brawl.
Biography
[edit]Leach was born in Chicago and grew up in Humboldt Park by a single mother. While her mother did not have much time to cook, Leach experienced her grandmother's cooking during twice-annual visits.[1] Her grandmother, Betty King, was from Lexington, Missouri, inspiring the name of the restaurant.[2]
After graduating from high school at sixteen, Leach attended culinary school at the Illinois Institute of Art – Chicago, graduating in 2006.[1][2] She found that, as a Black, queer woman, she often had to work harder than her peers.[1] In October 2006, she began working at the Renaissance Hotel Chicago and worked her way from grill cook to kitchen supervisor in 2007.[3]
In 2008, Leach went to work at the Art Institute of Chicago, where she worked with Raghavan Iyer.[4][2] While sous chef at the Art Institute of Chicago, she decided to leave to take a lower-paying job working under Tony Mantuano and Sarah Grueneberg at Spiaggia.[5] She was invited to work with Mantuano at the pop-up restaurant at the US Open, where she was offered a role in banquets at Spiaggia.[3] In 2011, Leach left to work at a Chicago off-premise catering company and then worked as executive chef at Zelda's Kosher Catering.[1] Wanting to begin her own catering company, Leach went on to work as a line cook at Four Seasons Hotel Chicago to give her the time to develop her own company.[3]
In 2016, Leach and her wife, Tanisha Griffin, started a company, “Cater to You Events & Drop Offs,” catering parties and weddings.[4] However, they struggled to build a following. After hearing Ludacris talk about building his career by starting with the Black and urban community, Leach decided to try doing the same, by opening a barbecue restaurant.[1]
In June 2017, Leach purchased a food truck. However, after just a few months, the truck was set on fire in front of her home.[1][6] Griffin left her career to help Leach rebuild, and friends and family supported the couple as they moved from their homes at the police's recommendation.[1]
In 2018, Leach and Griffin replaced the food truck.[1] The next year, they gained popularity following a live cooking demo in the WGN America studios. In September, 2019, they opened a physical location in Galewood.[1] A few months later, as part of a pilot project promoting Black-owned businesses, they opened a stall at the OneEleven food hall.[1] When two other residents left OneEleven due to the pandemic, Lexington Betty expanded into the space.[1] In August 2020, they opened a location in the medical district.[7] In 2022, they opened a South Side location.[8] She also opened a product line selling Wagyu hot dog franks.[5]
Lexington Betty's local and national success gained Leach the title of "pitmaster".[1]
Television
[edit]Leach has been featured in food television programs.
- 2021: Toon In with Me[citation needed]
- 2021: Chopped, contestant[1]
- 2022: Fire Masters, judge and contestant[1][9]
- 2023: BBQ Brawl, contestant, winner ("Master of Cue")[8][5]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n "Dominique Leach Is Staking a Claim for Black Women in the Barbecue World". Food & Wine. Retrieved 2024-02-29.
- ^ a b c "BBQ spot features family recipes - North Shore". digitaledition.chicagotribune.com. Retrieved 2024-02-29.
- ^ a b c "Chef Dominique Leach – CLINK Festival". Retrieved 2024-02-29.
- ^ a b "Dominique Leach - Chicago Gourmet". www.chicagogourmet.org. Retrieved 2024-02-29.
- ^ a b c Martorina, Anthony (2023-09-19). "Chicago Chef Dominique Leach brings home the win on Food Network's BBQ Brawl". Chicago Star Media. Retrieved 2024-02-29.
- ^ "This Female Pitmaster is Redefining Midwest BBQ in Chicago and Beyond". Midwest Living. Retrieved 2024-02-29.
- ^ "New Opening: Lexington Betty Unveils New Location". Chicago Food Magazine. Retrieved 2024-02-29.
- ^ a b "Dominique Leach Makes Food on Her Own Terms". Hospitality Design. Retrieved 2024-02-29.
- ^ Revay, Victoria (2022-04-03). "Fire Masters Season 3: Meet The Cast". Food Network Canada. Retrieved 2024-02-29.