Shorty's .32 & Josh Eden
Universally known among his industry peers as “Shorty,” veteran chef Josh Eden opened his namesake 32-seat restaurant and first solo project in SoHo. Having worked on many high-end properties in his extensive culinary career, he sought to open a neighborhood restaurant offering reasonably-priced, seasonal food in an inviting environment. At Shorty’s.32, Eden serves straight-forward yet inspired New American cuisine.
A born-and-bred New Yorker, Eden sparked a passion for the restaurant business cooking for his family and bartending throughout Manhattan. After attending the University of Maine, Eden returned home to enroll in the French Culinary Institute while bussing tables to edge into the industry at the famed restaurant Daniel. In 1994, he graduated from culinary school with honors and gained an entry-level position at Cascabel, where he apprenticed under Tom Valenti for one year before starting a fruitful 12-year tenure with Jean-George Vongerichten.
Eden first acquired a position with Vongerichten as a cook at JoJo, a restaurant designed to provide an accessible fine dining experience. It was there he was dubbed “Shorty,” a nickname that stuck with him throughout his career. Eden then earned a spot on the team at Vongerichten’s four-star restaurant, Jean Georges, where he worked the kitchen stations from garde manger to saucier, showing perseverance and dedication for five years before emerging as senior sous chef in 2000. Later that year, Vongerichten appointed Eden to open Dune Restaurant in the Ocean Club, Paradise Island in the Bahamas as executive chef. This was a valuable and fertile time for Eden, who fondly recalls bringing New York seeds to local Bahamian farmers and encouraging them to cultivate the produce necessary to keep his kitchen running.
In 2003, Eden returned to New York and came full circle to JoJo, where he began as a line cook, earning the title of chef de cuisine eight years later. He then helped Vongerichten open his restaurant 66 before acting as a consultant on several projects, including Xing in Hell’s Kitchen. Following years of contemplating his own property and supporting his fellow chefs and mentors, Eden conceived his humble neighborhood restaurant looking upon the facade of the quintessential SoHo brownstone. In October 2007, Eden opened Shorty’s.32, which has since received a glowing one-star review from The New York Times, in his dream location serving food as warm and welcoming as the chef greeting each guest at the door.
