Chef Mark Tarbell studied in Paris at the Ecole du Cuisine La Varenne, where he earned a Grande Diplôme d’Etude Culinaire. He also studied at Steven Spurrier’s l’Academie du Vin.
At 23, Tarbell moved to Arizona and joined The Boulders Resort in Carefree, becoming the youngest Food & Beverage Director of any Five Diamond property in the world. In 1994, he opened Tarbell’s Restaurant, followed by Barmouche in 1999 and The Oven (in Colorado) in 2004. Tarbell opened The Wine Store in 2013 and The Tavern in 2014.
The James Beard Foundation nominated Tarbell for “Best Chef – Southwest.” He is also a two-time inductee to The Arizona Hall of Culinary Fame, and his restaurants have earned more than 50 “Best Of” city and industry awards, including a “Best Restaurant” from Food and Wine magazine.
Tarbell’s frequent television and radio appearances include winning “Iron Chef America” on The Food Network as well as multiple appearances on The Cooking Channel. He has been the weekly wine columnist for the Arizona Republic since 2004 as well as a judge at the Los Angeles International Wine & Spirits competition (the largest and oldest in the country) for 25 years.
Tarbell served as host of “Check, Please! Arizona” on Arizona PBS for two successful years, earning a regional Emmy Award nomination in 2017. He now hosts “Plate & Pour.”
Tarbell also serves on many different advisory councils and boards, from the Arizona Department of Education to the Phoenix Art Museum and Phoenix Theatre. Tarbell has lent his services as a chef and wine connoisseur to raise millions of dollars at events such as the International Taste of Tennis, Culinary Evening with the California Winemasters for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, CASA, Phoenix Children’s Hospital, Hospice of the Valley, C-CAP, Humane USA for the Humane Society, and dozens more.
