Bonnie Frumkin Morales

The first-generation American daughter of Belarusian immigrants, chef Bonnie Morales (née Frumkin) grew up in Chicago in a large family that brought with them the distinctive culture of food and drink of the former Soviet Union. As an adult, Morales first began her professional career in product design, but after briefly working for a design consultancy in NYC, she left to pursue a career in food. She trained at the Culinary Institute of America, then honed her skills in several of New York and Chicago’s Michelin starred restaurants including Tru, where she met her future husband and business partner, Israel Morales. In 2014, the Morales’ opened Kachka, their dream restaurant devoted to the food that Bonnie grew up with, inspired by Russia and former Soviet republics such as Ukraine, Belarus, Georgia, and Uzbekistan. The creative, geometric plating of these dishes at Kachka is evidence of Morales’ design background. Kachka was named Willamette Week’s Restaurant of the Year shortly after opening, and has since received much acclaim and accolades from publications such as Bon Appétit, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Elle and Food & Wine. Eater National included Kachka on their list of Best Restaurants in America in 2015 and 2016. Chef Bonnie Morales was named one of Tasting Table’s “New Originals,’ and nominated for Food & Wine's The People's Best New Chef in 2015. Bonnie was named one of the Portland Business Journal’s Forty Under 40 in 2017. The restaurant recently launched a craft spirits line, Troika Spirits, with the release of Kachka Horseradish Vodka. When Morales isn’t in the kitchen, she and her husband spend time with their two sons and have been at work on their first cookbook, Kachka: A Return to Russian Cooking, to be released in November, 2017 from Flatiron Books.