Deerfield Native New Chef at Townhouse

This week's Patch Portraits feature a organizing a 5k to earn his Eagle Scout status, and a who has more than 1,600 followers on Twitter. 

When Michael Gottlieb was 14 years old, he got his first job working at , a restaurant staple in Deerfield.

After perfecting his craft at other restaurants across the North Shore and the country, Gottlieb now finds himself back where he started, in Deerfield but at a different location. 

The  graduate was recently hired as the Townhouse Kitchen and Bar’s new executive chef. The restaurant replaced the  at the corner of Waukegan and Deerfield roads.   

“It’s just ironic that my first job ever was literally across the street,” Gottlieb said in reference to Townhouse’s proximity to Italian Kitchen. “I could throw a steak across the street and hit the front door.” 

Name a local restaurant and there’s a chance Gottlieb has worked in the kitchen. He’s spent time at Gabriel’s in Highwood, Carlos’ in Highland Park, The Palm in Northbrook, Tramonto’s Steak and Seafood in Wheeling and Bank Lane Bistro in Lake Forest.

Now he’s excited to be in Deerfield and at Townhouse.

“It was a good opportunity for me to work in my backyard and get a lot of notoriety,” said Gottlieb, who has a lot of ideas for the restaurant’s future. “We definitely plan on being seasonal and as local as possible.” 

Click on the video link above to hear more about how Gottlieb landed back in his hometown and his plans for the local restaurant.