Clayton has been applauded by Bon Appétit, Saveur, Boston Globe, Wired Magazine, The New York Times, Travel and Leisure, and Cooking Light for his local-driven creativity and his role in helping shepherd the farm-to-table movement in the Midwest.
Clayton is a proud Nebraska native who began his culinary career in the dish pit at the age of 15. He was the youngest person to ever hold the Chef de Partie position under Chef Rick Tramonto at the world-renowned Tru Restaurant. During his time at Tru, he also trained under Three Michelin Star-rated Chef Laurent Gras. Clayton opened his first restaurant, The Grey Plume, in 2010.
The Green Restaurant Association has rated The Grey Plume as the most sustainable restaurant in the country. With a purposive menu and progressive initiatives, it has become a cornerstone for the local food movement in the Midwest. Clayton’s determined vision for a responsible, yet daring foodprint has grown into Provisions by The Grey Plume, an artisan grocery creating delicious, house made edibles. Clayton is a five time nominee by the James Beard Foundation and is a graduate of the Illinois Institute of Art- Chicago.
““Having a connection to the land and knowing what you’re eating takes you back to core values, to the bare necessities in a world fast-paced, technology driven. It’s the small things that make you able to enjoy and appreciate eating at a level that’s fun to share with others.””
“chef-owner Clayton Chapman set his mise en place in front of me. It was a thing to behold. Diverse and vibrant with all sorts of Midwest fruits and vegetables, it contained the building blocks for the dishes I would eat for dinner: delicate buttermilk gnocchi topped with caramelized Bartlett pears, preserved lemon peel, micro basil, and tart tomato powder; a pizzette chockablock with shiitake mushrooms, cold-smoked cauliflower, pickled ramps, persimmons, and local honey; and a colorful salad of finely shaved beets, watermelon radishes, turnips, and carrot and celery curls. Fantastic.”
Award-winning chef Clayton Chapman has been featured in:
New York Times
Omaha Magazine
Omaha World Herald
Parade
Reader’s Digest
Saveur
Sizzle Magazine
Sky
So Wine So Food
Star Tribune
Spirit
The Culture Trip
The Daily Meal
Time
Wall Street Journal
Washington Post
Wired
bon appétit
Boston Globe
Chicago Tribune
City Style and Living
Cooking Light
Delish
Ethical Foods
Food and Wine
Food Network
Good Food 100
Gourmet
Grub Street
Kansas City Star
Midwest Living
MSN
Nebraska Life
New York Magazine
Awards + Accolades:
James Beard FoundationSemifinalist, Rising Star Chef of the Year 2011
James Beard FoundationSemifinalist, Rising Star Chef of the Year 2012
James Beard Foundation: Semifinalist, Best Chefs in America 2013
James Beard FoundationSemifinalist, Best Chefs in America 2014
James Beard FoundationSemifinalist, Best Chefs in America 2015
Most Loved Meal of 2017 by Omaha World Herald
Best Chef in Omaha, Nebraska (5 years in a row)
Favorite Nebraska Restaurant by People
Good Food Awards, first place, 2018
The Grey Plume is the first restaurant in the world to have received the highest score of the Green Restaurant Association, a certification born in the United States that rewards the most Green restaurants in the country.