Extraordinary Chef

Founder of the Summer Shack

New England’s Jasper White

Chef, restaurateur, and cookbook author Jasper White is a leading authority on New England cuisine, particularly seafood. Once associated with fine dining, White is known for his down-to-earth cooking style. He preMonitoringMonsterfers simple but expertly executed dishes for “the working man” over upscale cuisine.

Restaurants

In 1983, White and his wife opened Jasper’s on Boston’s waterfront. With Jasper’s, White became known for his haute cuisine menu and his creative deconstructions of classic dishes. The restaurant, which championed New England specialties, quickly became a Boston landmark.

White closed Jasper’s in 1995 so he could spend more time with his family.

Surprising everyone who associated him with food for the culinary elite, White opened Summer Shack in 2000. The restaurant, an energetic space with seats for more than 300 diners, has been described by Food Arts as a “lobster shack on steroids.” Summer Shack allowed White to go back to making the kind of food he loved — hearty cuisine for the family.

Someof Shack now has branches in Boston, Mohegan Sun, and Cambridge, as well as a seasonal location on the Boston Harbor.

Background

White, who hails from New Jersey, spent his childhood years on a farm on the Jersey Shore. He has said that his Italian grandmother sparked his passion for good food.

White studied at The Culinary Institute of America. After graduating in 1976, he began his cooking career in restaurant kitchens all over the United States. In 1979, he met aspiring chef Lydia Shire, with whom he worked in revered Boston dining institutions The Parker House, The Copley Plaza, and The Bostonian Hotel.

It was while working at The Bostonian Hotel in the 1980s that White and Shire would introduce the city to a new kind of contemporary American cuisine. It was also during this time that White began doing research on New England’s culinary history.

Accomplishments

In 1991, White received the James Beard Award in the category “Best Chef: Northeast.” Summer Shack was nominated Best New Restaurant by the James Beard Foundation in 2001. White is a member of The Culinary Institute of America’s Society of Fellows.

White is the author of the best-selling cookbooks Jasper White’s Cooking from New England, Fifty Chowders, Lobster at Home, and The Summer Shack Cookbook.