Kevin Boehm

Kevin Boehm is an American restaurateur who is the co-founder and co-owner of Boka Restaurant Group and the Independent Restaurant Coalition. With his business partner, Rob Katz, he operates 22 restaurants in Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York City. Kevin, along with his business partner, won the James Beard Award for Outstanding Restaurateur in America in 2018.

Early life and education
Boehm was raised in Springfield, Illinois. He attended the University of Illinois.

Career
In 1993 Boehm opened his first restaurant on money he had saved as a server and bartender. He opened restaurants in Seaside, Florida, Springfield, Illinois, and Nashville Tennessee before founding Boka Restaurant Group with Rob Katz in 2002. Boehm has been featured as a judge on two episodes of Top Chef and one episode of Top Chef Canada. He also played himself in Episode 10 of Season 3 of “The Bear.”

As a writer, Boehm has had pieces published in Esquire Magazine, McSweeney's, Plate Magazine, and the Chicago Sun Times. He is also a contributing writer for Fast Company. Kevin is currently working on writing his own book called Bottomless Cup, this will be set to release in 2025, published by Abrams Press.

During the 2020 coronavirus pandemic, he co-founded and was involved in leading the Independent Restaurant Coalition,  an industry group founded during the pandemic to lobby the federal government for relief for restaurants and their employees, which culminated in $28.6 Billion in grants being given out by the federal government.

Honors
In 2018 Boehm won the James Beard Award for Outstanding Restaurateur, after being a finalist in 2015, 2016, and 2017. Boka Restaurant has been awarded one Michelin star for thirteen consecutive years.

Personal life
Boehm lives in Chicago in the neighborhood of River North.