Alumni Association Annual Meeting & Alumni Gathering May 14

As a self-described food nerd and classically trained chef with roots in the Midwest, Jordan Smith '07 has a penchant for weaving classic technique and modern ingredients imbued with subtle nostalgia, creating dishes like an artfully updated chicken cordon bleu using local Michigan chicken or an entire tasting menu themed around fast food. He’s a constant student of ingredients, products, technique, and life. He believes that the learning never stops, whether it’s in the kitchen or out in the world.  All of chef Jordan’s training and life experience has led him to Coeur, a restaurant which acts as an extension to his wild heart and expansive worldview. Coeur is all about manifesting those memorable, core food experiences in other people, whether it’s a diner’s first time trying duck confit or a simple piece of broccoli cooked to perfection. Chef Jordan believes ardently in exploring one’s own creativity, celebrating freedom, and unlocking those memories within us all.

Though he spent his formative years in Detroit, he left at a young age to study gastronomy and hone his craft inside some of the most prestigious kitchens in the country. As a freshman at Boston University, Jordan earned extra cash working as a prep cook and dishwasher, often falling asleep after a kitchen shift to the comforting sounds of Alton Brown’s Good Eats playing on the TV. Somewhere along the way, he fell in love with cooking. Jordan’s passion for the craft inspired him to train at the world renowned Culinary Institute of America in New Yorks’ Hudson Valley, where he cut his teeth working at legendary restaurants Restaurant Daniel and Bar Boulud. Next came a move to San Francisco to work in some of the world’s finest restaurants alongside some of the nation’s brightest chefs. In the Bay Area, Jordan cooked at Michael Tusk’s three-star Michelin restaurant Quince, Michael Mina’s eponymous one-star Mina, and the cult classic Burgundy-themed restaurant RN74. Having explored the country and its incredibly diverse cities and restaurants, Jordan returned to Detroit to plant his culinary flag closer to home, opening Coeur in the Detroit suburb of Ferndale in 2023. Under Jordan’s leadership, Coeur took the title of the Detroit Free Press’ Best New Restaurant in 2024 and remains one of the few chef owned-and-operated restaurants in the city.

Get registered by clicking here, and pass word to a fellow alum you'd like to see there! If you have any questions, please email alumni@cranbroo​k.edu.