Biography

Conrad Gallagher was born in Ireland on 12 March 1971.  He was raised near the farmlands of Letterkenny, Donegal, where his first culinary inspiration began, sparked by his mother’s and grandmother’s home cooking.

After training in Ireland from the age of twelve, he went on to win four gold medals at Hotel Olympia and Chef Ireland.  He worked and trained with some of Ireland's top chefs from 1985 to 1990 before moving to New York City to pursue his dream of becoming a leading chef.

When he arrived in New York, he joined The Plaza Hotel, Donald Trump's flagship property.  After 18 months at The Plaza, the Waldorf Astoria's Peacock Alley recruited him, where he spent two years as Sous Chef under Laurent Manrique. Within that time, they received a four-star rating from the New York Times.

 
During his time in New York he also worked at Le Cirque, Restaurant Daniel, Le Bernadine, and Park Avenue Café.
 
While in New York, he was brought to the White House to prepare St. Patrick's Day dinner for former President Bill Clinton who would later visit Conrad's restaurants in Dublin and London.
 
After leaving New York, Conrad was invited to join Alain Ducasse's 3 Michelin Star restaurant, Louis XV at Hotel de Paris in Monte Carlo, Monaco. He spent two years fine-tuning and perfecting his craftsmanship before heading home to Ireland where he opened his first restaurant, Peacock Alley.
 
At the age of 25, he was awarded his first Michelin Star.  At the age of 27 and opened Lloyd's Brasserie and Mango Toast as well as consulting with a number of top Irish and English restaurants.  He won Restaurant of the Year, Chef of the Year, Best Service and Wine List and numerous other accolades, including Condé Nast Traveler's Top 15 Restaurants in the World.

After owning and operating restaurants in Dublin, London and New York, Conrad has moved to Dublin, Ireland where he consults to retaurants and hotels around the World.

He has written and published four best-selling and award-winning cookbooks and has had two television cookery programmes.  Conrad looks forward to being a part of the new food revolution in Africa.

Awards for Peacock Alley: 

Irish Chef of the Year (1998, 1999-2001)
Best Restaurateur (1998, 2001, 2002)
5 AA Rosettes (1998-2002)
Best Service (1998-2001)
2 ** Bridgestone Guide (1997, 2002, 2003)
Irish Restaurant of the Year (1997, 1998, 2000, 2002)
Michelin Stars (1996-2002)

Awards for Lloyd's Brasserie:

1 Michelin Red M Rating (2000)
Bushmill's Restaurant of the Year (1999)
Best New Irish Restaurant (1999)
3 AA Rosettes (1999)
Best Newcomer (1998)
1 Star Bridgestone Guide (1998-2001)

Author:

New Irish Cooking, A&A Farmer, Ltd.
One Pot Wonders, Kyle Cathie, Ltd.
Take Six Ingredients, Kyle Cathie, Ltd.
3 Step Cooking, Kyle Cathie, Ltd.
Weekly columns in numerous newspapers and magazines.

Television:

TV3 Ireland
RTE Gourmet Ireland
BBC Food
UK Food Live
The TV Food Network, USA
Good Morning America, USA