MIchael Tusk
Cotogna, Quince, and Verjus | San Francisco
JUNE 2019
Growing up in New Jersey, Michael Tusk was curious about food. While studying art history at Tulane University, Tusk took his first restaurant job. It was then that his curiosity became adoration. Upon graduation, Tusk attended the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York. He continued his education at Michelin-starred restaurants throughout France and Italy where he was forever inspired by the Barbaresco region’s northern Italian cuisine. In 1988, Tusk moved to the San Francisco Bay Area to work for Jeremiah Tower’s historic restaurant, Stars. He left a year later to join the team at Chez Panisse under Alice Waters, where he remained for four years.
After six additional months staging at Michelin-star restaurants in France, Tusk began working at Oliveto under the wings of Chef Paul Bertolli. Tusk left Oliveto six years later to open his own restaurant. In 2003, he and his wife Lindsay opened Quince, an Italian-inspired fine-dining destination located in Pacific Heights. They relocated Quince to Jackson Square in 2009 where it earned three Michelin stars and four stars from the San Francisco Chronicle. In November 2010, the Tusks opened their second restaurant, more casual Cotogna, adjacent to Quince. In January 2019, the Tusks welcomed Verjus, a casual European-style wine bar, to the Jackson Square family.
In 2011, Tusk received the James Beard Award for “Best Chef: Pacific” and Quince received nominations for “Outstanding Service” in 2014 and “Outstanding Restaurant” in 2016.
