Finishing Vidalia Sweet Onion and Crab Soufflé

Winner of the James Beard Foundation's "Best Chef Mid-Atlantic 1999", Jeffrey Buben is the chef and owner of two prestigious restaurants in Washington, D.C., Vidalia and Bistro Bis.  Acknowledged by Bon Appétit as one of the "Best New Restaurants of 1993," Vidalia has garnered both local and national recognition with its regional American cooking delivered with Southern hospitality. 

Renovated in the summer of 2003, Vidalia has consistently been awarded three stars since October 2003 from the Washington Post food critic, Tom Sietsema and top honors by Washingtonian Magazine's "Top 100" list since 1994.  Vidalia has also been the recipient of the prestigious DiRona award by the Distinguished Restaurants of North America each year since 1996.  The restaurant's wine program has received the Wine Spectator's "Best of Award of Excellence" 2005, 2006 and 2007 and the Wine Enthusiast's "Award of Distinction" in January 2006.   A vote by America Online users named Vidalia as the number one restaurant in the "City's Best Restaurants 2007."

The fall of 1998 heralded the arrival of Buben's second restaurant, Bistro Bis located at the Hotel George on Capitol Hill.  Bis features creative contemporary French bistro cooking with updated renditions of classic fare.  Bis was voted one of "Washington's Best New Restaurants to Watch" by Washingtonian Magazine in 1999.  Washingtonian's "Top 100" in 2007 listed Bistro Bis in the top third of the city and the restaurant has been included in the magazine's "Top 100 Restaurants" since 2002. The Washington Post has recognized Bis in numerous years as a top dining destination and applauded for the "best onion soup" in the area.  Nominated since 2005 by the Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington for "Restaurant Power Spot," Bis continues to be the place "Where Capitol Hill Dines."  The Mobil Travel Guide, AOL City's Best consistently rank Bistro Bis in the top tier as "Best Hot Spot Restaurant" and as a "Power Lunch destination. 

Jeffrey Buben is a 1978 graduate of The Culinary Institute of America and has served on the school's alumni board of directors.  With over 20 years in the industry, he has worked in such notable restaurants as The Sign of the Dove, Le Cygne and Le Chantilly in New York and at several distinguished hotels including The Four Seasons, The Mayflower and The Hotel Pierre.  Voted "Chef of the Year" in 1996 by The Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington, Jeff continues to work tirelessly to contribute to many different charitable organizations including Share Our Strength, Food & Friends and the Wine Advocate Fund for Philanthropy to name a few. 

Jeffrey is a partner with his wife Sallie in the Fully-Baked Restaurant Group, which owns and manages Vidalia Restaurant and Bistro Bis in Washington, D.C.