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Freitag was chef de cuisine at The Harrison in Tribeca , transforming it into a two-star neighborhood restaurant , when arepresentative of �ron Chef America called . She was huddled in the chef ’ s office under the stairs , next to afreezer . “ New York City restaurants are extremely competitive , and Ihad my own P� team to get press out there about new chefs ,” she says . She had been on the To�ay show and �oo� �ornin� America and loved watching �ron Chef America , but “ that ’ s not the way I cook ,” she says . “ Exploding frozen ketchup� Ididn ’ t want it .”
When her P�representative got wind of her response , though , he said “ �et ’ s discuss this ,” she says . “ He wanted me to go on for the restaurant ,” says Freitag . “ And Igot to wear achef coat that said �The Harrison ’ on it .”
As nerve-wracking as the experience was — the secret ingredient to be used was Alaskan King Crab — she says it was fun ( her sous chef was �erona resident Ariana �uarte ).
“ The show had an audience at the time , and my mom and dad came ,” she says . “ My dad said �You do this every day . You ’ re going to walk out of here and go to work , so enjoy this .’ It never occurred to me that I could do that . He said �You got this ’ — with expletives ,” she says , laughing . “ He had nodoubt in me . I ’ ve really taken that with me .”
Freitag also has the confidence that comes from knowing her industry from top to bottom . As a teenager , she bussed tables at the ( now closed ) Friar Tuck Inn in Cedar Grove and worked the griddle at Glen �idge Country Club ’ s poolside concession stand . When �oan �evine , her home economics teacher at Memorial High School ( later Cedar Grove High School ) recommended she consider applying to the Culinary Institute of America , Freitag and her parents went up to Hyde Park , New York , for Open House �ay .
“ At the time , chefs were revered in Europe , but in the � . S ., itwas
�ERE COMES T�E ���GE Freita� waits behind the scenes be�ore atapin� o� Chopped�
considered a blue-collar career ,” she says . “ I was enamored with them from watching �ulia Child and Graham Kerr on T� , and CIA was the Harvard ofchef schools .”
She quickly learned that her classes would teach her the basics of food preparation , and that she ’ d have to actively put her techniques to work and hone her skills on the job . “ There was no Food Network , no food styling or photographers or in�uencers ,” she says . “ You would be either achef or a pastry chef .” She followed up her education with a job in the Florida Keys and worked her way up from line cook to sous chef to chef .
“ I covered any corner of the kitchen ,” she says , “ and learned different cuisines .”
In the early �90s at fabled restaurateur �ean-Georges �ongerichten ’ s �ong in Manhattan , she learned how to combine French cooking technique with Southeast Asian ingredients and �avors . She realized she worked well under pressure , and got solid preparation for her future in cooking competitions .
“ It was quite a scene , one of the hottest restaurants where we served �00 people anight , and there was pressure — yelling and screaming , but everyone was working to their
COURTESY OF AMANDA FREITAG
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HOLIDAY 2022 MONTCLAIR MAGAZINE