Kyle Connaughton

Kyle Connaughton is a chef, culinary educator, and cookbook author. He and wife Katina Connaughton opened SingleThread Farm-Restaurant-Inn in Healdsburg, California in 2016. The restaurant received a perfect 4 stars from The San Francisco Chronicle in March 2017 and a James Beard Foundation Restaurant Design Award in May 2017. It was awarded Two Stars in the 2018 Michelin Red Guide, one of only a few restaurants to earn the rating in its’ first year. The restaurant then received Three Michelin Stars just a year later in the 2019 Red Guide.

SingleThread is also a member of Relais & Chateaux, an international organization of the world’s top restaurants and hotels. In 2018 SingleThread received the Miele “One to Watch” award from Worlds 50 Best Restaurants and in 2021 was ranked “#37 Best Restaurant in the World”. In 2020 SingleThread was awarded Forbes Five Stars and AAA Five Diamonds.

Starting his culinary career in Los Angeles at Spago Beverly Hills, Hama Sushi, Lucques, and the Dining Room at the Ritz Carlton. Kyle's culinary background includes working for Michel Bras as well as kaiseki and sushi restaurants in Hokkaido, Japan. In 2006 Kyle was brought on as Head Chef of Research & Development at The Fat Duck in Bray, England. Kyle worked with Heston Blumenthal and the Fat Duck Team to complete the IACP Award-winning The Big Fat Duck Cookbook. He also contributed to Nathan Myhrvold’s Modernist Cuisine series.

Kyle is the Professor Emeritus at the Culinary Institute of America where he developed the curriculum for the Institute’s Bachelors of Culinary Science program and has also been awarded an Honorary Doctorate in Culinary Arts. In 2015, Kyle co-published Donabe - Classic and Modern Japanese Clay Pot Cooking and co-founded the culinary research and development firm, Pilot R&D.