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How did motherhood change Stephanie Izard’s relationship with work?
Izard told Midwest Living on March 7, 2026, that parenthood brought her more patience at home and at work and helped her stop sweating small things. She said she still wants her son to see her work ethic, but that her perspective has shifted.
“I used to give nearly all my mental energy to food and restaurants, and now that energy is shared,” she said. She also tries to bring her son into that world by cooking together, traveling, and exploring new flavors.
What does balance look like for Izard?
Izard does not describe balance as an equal division of time. Some days involve travel; others mean making treats for school or cheering at a baseball game, alongside time at the restaurants. She said she tries to quiet “mom guilt” by being present where she is, and described intentional time together ranging from trips and weekends away to ordinary days at home.
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In a separate 2023 interview with Chicago Star Media, Izard recalled sushi nights with her then-seven-year-old son and encouraging him to try something new each time. That age and recollection belong to the 2023 interview, not a current description of him.
How does Stephanie Izard describe her leadership style?
Izard says empathy is central to how she runs kitchens and businesses. In the Midwest Living interview, she said she cares about employees’ career paths and lives outside work, not only their jobs, and believes that care helps create stronger, more resilient teams.
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She has said she wants workplaces to be supportive and enjoyable, where colleagues celebrate one another. As her restaurant group grew, she says employees gained opportunities to move between restaurants and develop within the company. Each restaurant has its own personality, while sharing a broader culture.
In a 2024 Salon interview, Izard likewise described distinct menus, concepts, and themes connected by shared team values and an effort to make the restaurants inclusive workplaces. These are Izard’s descriptions of her approach, not independently measured claims about employee outcomes.
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Which Chicago restaurants does Izard recommend?
In the March 2026 profile, Izard named friends’ restaurants Joe Flamm’s spots and Monteverde as places she tries to visit when she is back in the Midwest. The interview also asked what diners should order at restaurants associated with her. Treat the dishes below as her recommendations at the time of that interview, not a promise that every item remains on a current menu.
| Restaurant | Izard’s suggested order | Why she singled it out |
|---|---|---|
| Girl and the Goat, Chicago | Pork shank | A shareable, large-format dish with sticky glaze and bright pickled salads. |
| Little Goat Diner | Chicken and dumplings at dinner | A dinner-specific recommendation in the interview. |
| Cabra | Tuna quinoa salad | Izard said she makes it at events around the country and likes its crunch and texture. |
| Valley Goat | Avocado dip with shrimp salad | The specific dish she recommended in the profile. |
| Girl and the Goat, Los Angeles | Mango sticky rice | Coconut rice with mango-tamarind sorbet. |
| Duck Duck Goat | Whole duck | Izard said it took time to perfect and is one of her favorite dishes to share. |
| Lucky Goat | Chili crunch burger | The specific order she named in the profile. |
Midwest Living describes Girl and the Goat as expanded to Los Angeles and identifies Little Goat Diner, Duck Duck Goat, Cabra, and Valley Goat among Izard’s restaurant concepts. Restaurant locations and operating details can change, so confirm directly with a venue before planning a visit.
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How did Izard’s career take shape?
Izard is a Chicago native who said she returns to the city a couple of times a month and remains proud to call herself a Chicagoan. The Midwest Living profile says she first gained national attention in 2008 as the first woman to win Top Chef. In the 2024 Salon interview, she described the competition as a test of creativity and resilience that taught her to work under pressure.
Izard has also spoken about finding encouragement from women in food. She recalled sitting beside chef Ina Pinkney at a women-chef breakfast early in her career and said the welcome and support helped her feel more confident. She did not frame her own career as a comparison between male and female chefs; she said she looked up to great chefs broadly and focused on improving.
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Other milestones reported in a 2023 Q&A with The Fresh Market include winning season one of Food Network’s Iron Chef Gauntlet, being named a Food & Wine Best New Chef in 2011, and receiving a James Beard Award in 2013.
What cooking influences has Izard discussed?
Izard has described cooking with her mother, planning weekly menus from cookbooks and recipe cards, making Mandarin pancakes, and eating Mu Shu together. The Fresh Market’s 2023 interview says her mother’s international cooking influenced her and that Duck Duck Goat was still using her mother’s Mandarin pancake recipe at that time.
In Salon’s 2024 interview, Izard named Red Boat fish sauce as her favorite ingredient if she had to choose one. She also mentioned fish sauce, pickled produce such as Fresno chiles or onions, and herbs including mint, cilantro, and basil among ingredients she uses often. That is a reported personal preference, not a product test or sponsorship.
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