Stephanie Izard

Chef and Owner, Girl & the Goat

About This Expert

Stephanie Izard was born in Chicago, Illinois. She attended the Scottsdale Culinary Institute in Arizona, then returned to Chicago in 2000 to pursue her culinary career. After cooking at various Chicago restaurants for amazing chefs (Jean-Georges Vongerichten at Vong; Sean McClain at Spring; Dale Levitski at La Tache) she opened her first restaurant, Scylla, in Bucktown in 2004.

A few years later she had the opportunity to compete on Bravo’s Top Chef, which she won along with being named fan favorite. The idea for Girl & the Goat began to take shape after Stephanie met her business partners Rob and Kevin of BOKA Restaurant Group. After taking much time and care in choosing the location in the West Loop, the restaurant opened in Summer 2010. Across the street, Stephanie opened Little Goat Diner just a few years later. As the West Loop continues to be a happy home for the goat restaurants, Izard will launch her third restaurant with the BOKA group in the neighborhood in 2015.