Rising Star Chef Justin Bazdarich of Oxomoco - Biography

Justin Bazdarich moved from Kansas City to New York City in 2001 to attend the French Culinary Institute. He scored an internship at Jean-Georges and in three years grew from intern to sous chef and then opening chef of Perry Street. Two years later, Bazdarich signed on as a chef-trainer for Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s Culinary Concepts and launched 15 restaurants in far-flung locations, including Istanbul, Qatar, Cabo, and Las Vegas.

In 2010, Bazdarich teamed up with friend Todd Feldman to build a business in Brooklyn’s Clinton Hill neighborhood. Before opening Speedy Romeo, he learned the art of wood-fired cooking by working at Roman’s under Chef David Gould. Bazdarich and Feldman also traveled to Italy to learn the traditions of Italian butchers, chefs, and pizzaiolos. Speedy Romeo opened its doors in 2011 with Bazdarich cranking out pizzas (laced with Kansas City provel) from a wood-burning oven, and steaks and composed dishes from a wood-fired grill. He was named a StarChefs Rising Star in 2013, and four years later, Bazdarich opened a second location of Speedy Romeo on the Lower East Side and expanded the original spot in Brooklyn. Oxomoco, Bazdarich’s first foray into Mexican cuisine, opened in early 2018 in the Greenpoint neighborhood of Brooklyn and earned a Michelin star in 2019.