About

Chez Lyons is a seasonal supper club based in Chicago brought to you by the husband and wife duo of Corey Lyons and Maude Carroll. It was born out of an insatiable need to cook for other people, to create and explore new techniques and ingredients, and to do it all in a laid back, cozy dinner party setting. We both love to eat mind bending and delicious food, but all too often those experiences come in a stuffy atmosphere and with a hefty price. It was time to do things our way. 

The Chez Lyons Supper Club will happen whenever time allows, with the aim to at least do one dinner per season. Currently there are eight seats available per night, all one seating, communal style. The food will run the gamut from comforting to exotic to weird and new. While there will be a focus on food that is seasonal and locally sourced, we can't help but showcase interesting and exotic ingredients from around the globe when we can. We want the food to be fun, visually engaging, and most of all, fucking tasty.
Starting in 2013, we are looking to go mobile/nomadic when possible. Interested in hosting a dinner and letting us taking over your kitchen? Just email chezlyonssupperclub@gmail.com and we'll get this culinary ball rollin'.

Bio
Corey Lyons, Chef
I grew up somewhat of a picky eater with no real interest in cooking or thinking of food beyond a means to fill my belly, but sometime around my mid-20s I caught the cooking bug, hard. I came to realize I had an odd knack for the stuff I was never aware of. The bug took hold to the point that I volunteered to work at Graham Elliot's booth the first time he did Lollapalooza. Turns out, I kinda liked it, opting to skip the many breaks I was offered to check out the bands so that I could keep working. He invited me to do a stage at his restaurant, where I got my first real taste of the inner working of what would eventually be a Michelin starred restaurant. A few months later, with no formal experience or training, I was working full time at Custom House Tavern under Chef Aaron Deal (and with the bad ass pastry Chef Bryce Caron). It was one of the greatest working experiences of my life. I worked my ass off and was constantly learning. For five days a week I got listen to metal and break down a pig heads, and barely had to deal with people - what more could I want? Even on the longest days I would still come home and make dinner, usually trying to perfect something I learned at work, or seeing how I could tweak it on my own. 

As much as I absolutely loved it, it wasn't a sustainable relationship, and eventually I went back to cozy 9-5 living. Yet I still yearned for the kitchen, so I would get a stage in here and there (such as at EL Ideas and Lula) to fill the void. I still had this undying need to cook for other people, to cook the food I really wanted to cook, to try new things and constantly push myself and my abilities. After a year of coming up with a billion reasons why I shouldn't/couldn't do an "underground dinner", I learned to silence the little voice inside of telling me those things and decided to make this happen. Inspired by Chefs like Philip Foss, Brandon Baltzley and Iliana Regan, I've come to fully embrace this emerging model of cooking and serving food. Underground dinner, micro restaurant, supper club - call it what you want, but with the alternative approach to the traditional restaurant combined with a bit of a punk rock attitude, I found my niche. 


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