Tony Clement

Executive Chef

Come seven o’clock at Mizuna, most of the heads on the open line are tucked down—chopping, stirring, plating, grilling. At any given time this already tight kitchen hosts up to three additional bodies, in the form of culinary “stages” working toward their degrees. In the center of this focused action–pulling tickets, calling items, educating the stages, and acting as intermediary to servers is a practiced choreographer: Tony Clement. Executive Chef Tony Clement was still in his early 20’s when he landed at Mizuna five years ago. Tony had already acquired an extensive set of credentials from New York and Philadelphia eateries, but at Mizuna he’s come to command his own team, source his own products, hone and polish the skill-set that he hopes to someday bring to his own restaurant property.
“I like the freedom Mizuna gives me to be artistically creative while maintaining the utmost professionalism. Our menu changes all the time, so I get to work with every kind of food—experiment with ingredients and processes, turn exotic ingredients into familiarity and comfort for our guests.
Right now it’s spring, so everything green is speaking to me—fresh sprouts and asparagus, fava beans, arugula from my home garden, even parsley and chives. The farmers I work with are coming into new lambs and bringing in duck and chicken eggs, pigs, even boar. Every day is different, challenging. Fun. “