Long known as the “Father of Southwestern Cuisine,” Dean Fearing ’78 credits his passion for food to days spent in his grandmothers’ kitchens. In the early 1980s, he began perfecting traditional regional dishes, barbecue, and Mexican street food recipes using locally sourced ingredients, and developing what the world now recognizes as southwestern cuisine.
Recognized with a CIA Leadership Award as a “Pioneer of American Cuisine,” Fearing spent more than two decades as executive chef of The Rosewood Mansion on Turtle Creek before opening his namesake establishment, Fearing’s, in the Ritz-Carlton Dallas in 2007. Since then, Fearing has published a successful cookbook, The Texas Food Bible, and he and his recipes have been featured in many publications, including in The New York Times, USA Today, Newsweek, Food & Wine, and Bon Appétit.
Fearing is also a television personality. For 22 years, he starred in a regional show called Dean’s Cuisine and starred in Entertaining with Dean Fearing. He has appeared on countless news and talk show programs, including Good Morning America, The Today Show, and The View.
His many accolades include the Silver Spoon Award for sterling performance from Food Arts magazine.
Chef Dean Fearing majored in Culinary Arts at CIA in Hyde Park, NY. He is a member of the inaugural class of CIA’s Alumni Hall of Fame.