Kate Zambreno

Wine whiz

Alpana Singh, 26

When she was just 21 years old, the California-born wine prodigy became the youngest person to pass the advanced course of the Court of Master Sommeliers, and as of this March became the youngest Master Sommelier in the country, and the youngest woman in the court. That's a lot of progress in a short time for the former waitress who originally had to study "Wine for Dummies" for a weekend in order to bulk up on her wine know-how. Since being chosen as the sommelier of Everest, Singh has been showered with accolades, from being nominated for the James Beard award for "Outstanding Wine Service" in 2002 to being named one of Crain's "40 under 40" to winning the title of "Best Sommelier in Chicago" from Chicago magazine. Singh chalks much of the media attention up to her tender age. "People in this country are fascinated with youth," she says. "We love seeing young people succeed, we love rooting for the underdog. We love the Disney story."

Sweet tooth

Dayna Berns, 27

"Age has not really been an issue. The fact that I'm a woman has been an issue," says the new pastry chef at Nine. "I had to learn early on, if you can't take the heat you have to get out of the kitchen." It would make sense that her youth wouldn't be an issue, as Berns originally apprenticed in pastry under Robert Ash, two years her junior, and took over as head dessert guru when he left for an executive position at the Arts Club. The self-taught pastry chef originally graduated with a sociology degree, but when she got a job working sales on-site for Levy Events in their catering kitchen, she knew she wanted to stay near the oven. "Every day, I'm still learning, but I'm self-taught, and I learn by trying things and changing things." Her specialty creations include banana egg rolls, a chocolate mousse cake, blueberry raspberry Napoleons and a fresh strawberry tart for spring.

Bar master

Payman Khania, 25

Payman Khania doesn't know when he was dubbed "Martini Man," but the popular senior manager at Bistro 110 has in his two-year tenure elevated mixing drinks to an art form. This year the mixologist in charge of Bistro 110's beverage program has concocted such fancy drinks as Le Fleur de Mai, an edible flower martini, and the Winter Kiss Martini, a candy-cane-flavored drink. The youngest member on the management team does get a reaction when customers find out he just came of age four years ago. "Not too many people realize I'm 25 until I tell them," says Khania. "I look a littler older than I am. It definitely comes up all the time."

French protégé

Jon Fortes, 26

It would be considered ambitious to know you wanted to be a chef in college; the chef de cuisine at Bin 36 in Lincolnshire actually went to a culinary-arts high school growing up in Pennsylvania, and has since never stopped entertaining in the kitchen. With the advent of dynamic chefs on TV like Bobby Flay and Emeril,"younger chefs are now in," Fortes says. "They can do the job, and they're more energetic. They can put in the hours." Which was for Fortes 100 hours a week when the Lincolnshire location opened up almost two years ago, and has since dwindled down to a mere 70-hour work week.

Food sculptor

Jack Suebsawangkul, 28

The Thai native learned the ancient technique of vegetable carvings (dating back to 17th century royal Thailand) four years ago while working at the fine-dining Thai establishment Arun's. Son of Erawan's Art Lee, Suebsawangkul went to work for his father, whittling intricate flowers, animals and leaves to adorn every Thai dish. "It's a very intense technique," says Suebsawangkul.

Sugar brother

Edward Suqi, 27

Managing partner of the Willy Wonkaesque nightclub/dessert bar Sugar (with his brother Jerry and Steve Oakes) is the furthest reach away from Suqi's former post at Morgan Stanley Dean Witter. This now-veteran of the nightclub industry definitely didn't experience nepotism when he started working at Narcisse, he says. "Jerry kind of ran me through the ringer. I started as a barback, a busboy, waited tables, worked in the kitchen. I was kind of being groomed." Now, Suqi's role is more on the business end, managing day-to-day operations, although he's still greeting clientele on the floor five days a week.

Fresh air

Sumanth Das, 27

Six months ago, the Bombay-born and Indonesia-schooled graduate of the Cooking and Hospitality Institute of Chicago became executive chef of Lakeview's new Eastern fusion experiment Monsoon, after serving a reign at the five-star Peninsula Chicago's Shanghai Terrace. With a young staff comprised of graduates fresh out of culinary school, Das has been serving up bold Asian-inspired cuisine to much buzz. Age was not an issue when the chef was chosen to make a statement with Monsoon. "They were actually looking for someone young in an adventurous kind of way," he says.

Wonder boy

Eric Aubriot, 30

Since the French-born culinary phenom turns 31 in two weeks, he just barely makes our cutoff. But regardless of how far the owner of Lincoln Park's French fine-dining restaurant Escargot (formerly Aubriot) and the Lincoln Square bistro Tournesol gets into his thirties, it would be hard not to think of him as young for his resume. Named chef de cuisine at Carlos in Highland Park at 23, Aubriot was a mere 26 when he and his wife Stephanie opened up the eponymous restaurant to critical ooh-la-las. With two "Rising Star Chef" nods from the James Beard Foundation, Aubriot is helping usher in a generation of hip young culinary artists. "I don't think it's an old fat guy thing anymore," he says. "You see a lot more women now, too, which is good. I think it's definitely changing."

(2003-04-30)

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