CIA Alumni Bio
Restaurateur and entrepreneur Cameron Mitchell, president and founder of Cameron Mitchell Restaurants, started as a dishwasher in a steakhouse in his hometown of Columbus, OH, and worked his way to become president of his own successful, multi-concept restaurant company. And, in October of 2008, Mitchell became the first CIA graduated to become Chairman of the Board of Trustees of The Culinary Institute of America.
Begins with One Restaurant
Cameron Mitchell Restaurants began with one restaurant in Columbus in 1993 and grew to a 33-unit company with locations in nine states. Mitchell sold his 19-unit Mitchell’s Fish Market and three-unit Cameron’s Steakhouse chains to Ruth Chris Steak House for $92 million in early 2008. He now operates 37 restaurants under 14 dining concepts in Ohio, Michigan, Florida, Colorado, California, Massachusetts, Illinois, Indiana, New York, Pennsylvania, Texas, Washington, DC, and Arizona, plus a catering company, Cameron Mitchell Premier Events.
Kudos
Mitchell has been honored as Ohio Entrepreneur of the Year by Ernst & Young, Small Businessperson of the Year by the U.S. Small Business Administration, and “Concept of Tomorrow Visionary” by Restaurant Hospitality magazine. He received a Silver Plate Award from the International Foodservice Manufacturers Association in 2007.
Alumnus
Mitchell, who has served on the CIA’s Board of Trustees since 1999, has sponsored several scholarships at the college, and in 2004 he provided the college with its largest gift ever from a graduate.
Cameron Mitchell majored in culinary arts at The Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY. He is the president and founder of Cameron Mitchell Restaurants based in Worthington, OH.