Josh Capon (born 1972) [1] is an American chef and television personality.
Josh Capon attended the University of Maryland, where he discovered his talent in cooking for his friends, which he funded by accepting small donations. [1] Subsequently, this led to Capon transferring to Johnson and Wales University.
While at Johnson and Wales, Capon was selected as a culinary intern for Charlie Palmer to work at his acclaimed Manhattan restaurant Aureole. After graduating in 1994, Capon continued to work for Palmer and helped open The Lenox Room. [2]
He went on to work for David Burke at the Park Avenue Café and then spent a year traveling in Europe, honing his cooking expertise. [1]
Upon his return, Capon became a sous-chef at The St. Regis Hotel's Astor Court under Gray Kunz, where he then reunited with Charlie Palmer and became the executive chef at Alva, Palmer's American bistro. [3] After a couple of years as executive chef at Matthew's on the Upper East Side, he took the reins as executive chef of Canteen in SoHo. [1]
After a few years, he partnered with John McDonald and Josh Pickard to open Lure Fishbar in the former Canteen space, a sophisticated seafood and sushi restaurant. The trio went on to open Burger & Barrel Winepub, [4] El Toro Blanco, [5] Bowery Meat Company, [6] and a Miami version of Lure Fishbar in the historic Loews hotel. [7]
Capon is a seven-time winner of the People's Choice award at the NYC Wine & Food Festival's Burger Bash [8] and has appeared on Rachael Ray , [9] Good Morning America , [10] TODAY , [11] and the Food Network. [12] He has also been featured in The New York Times [13] and New York Magazine . [14]
In 2021, he co-founded the hospitality company VCR Group with Gary Vaynerchuk, Conor Hanlon, and David Rodolitz. In early 2022, VCR Group partnered with Masa Ito and Kevin Kim to open ITO, a 16-seat omakase in Tribeca, New York. [15] Later in 2022, VCR Group began selling NFT memberships for Flyfish Club, a planned private dining club, the location of which had not yet been determined. [16] In April 2024 the club began accepting cash for memberships. [17] Flyfish Club opened in September 2024 on the Lower East Side. [18]
Capon has participated in the US Open for many years through his Flyfish pop-up, where he serves lobster rolls, oysters, and other signature dishes. [19]
In 2023, VCR Group expanded its restaurant portfolio with the addition of Capon's Burgers, located in the Fontainebleau on the Las Vegas Strip, [2] and the Modern American restaurant, Little Maven, in New York City's Flatiron neighborhood. [20] In September 24, 2024, he became a chef at the restaurant Flyfish Club in New York, which was funded with NFT sales. [21]