Jack Strong has been appointed Executive Chef at The Renaissance Phoenix Downtown Hotel
The Renaissance Phoenix Downtown Hotel has named Jack Strong as Executive Chef for the 521-room iconic property, according to General Manager Paige Lund. With more than 26 years of revered culinary experience, the Oregon-born Strong, who hails from Oregon's Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians, was most recently the Executive Chef of his tribe's casino and resort, Chinook Winds Casino Resort, located on the Oregon coast in Lincoln City. Prior to that, Strong was Chef de Cuisine at the AAA Four Diamond Salish Lodge & Spa in Snoquaimie, WA. Strong's culinary career in the Valley began at The Phoenician's Windows on the Green restaurant where he spent two years as Sous Chef from 2004 to 2006. He joined the culinary team at the Sheraton Wild Horse Pass Resort & Spa in 2006, as Chef de Cuisine at Kai, the only AAA Five Diamond, Forbes Five Star restaurant in Arizona. While there, Strong worked side by side with James Beard award-winner and consulting chef, Janos Wilder, and the resort's Executive Chef Michael O'Dowd. During his tenure at Kai, he co-authored the restaurant's cookbook "The New Native American Cuisine - Five Star Recipes from the Chefs of Arizona's Kai Restaurant," and in 2008, was nominated for a James Beard Long-list for Best Chef: Southwest. In addition to overseeing the day-to-day operations of The Renaissance Phoenix's culinary operations, Strong will also oversee the hotel's newest restaurant, Dust Cutter, a modern urban saloon, which just opened in May 2017. The menu, which pays homage to the region and the Sonoran Desert climate, will be a perfect match for Strong, whose Native American heritage plays a strong role in his culinary philosophy, utilizing farm-fresh, native ingredients from the region to create and tailor his menus. Strong has received numerous accolades and industry honors, has partnered with the Santa Fe Indian Market as a guest chef for tribal events, represented tribal foods and traditions in Hong Kong, and won the National Museum of the American Indian cook off at the Smithsonian in Washington D.C. Strong attended the Culinary Arts Program at Lane Community College in Eugene, Oregon, from 1994-1996, where he was awarded Student Chef of the Year.
