Clay Conley

Clay Conley may already be executive chef of Azul at the Mandarin Oriental, Miami, but he’s been head of the kitchen long before that. Conley became a protégé of well-known Chef Todd English soon after his graduation from Florida State University’s hospitality school, and joined him at his flagship restaurant Olives in Boston. Conley has worked closely with English to open restaurants in Washington D.C., Las Vegas and Tokyo, and it wasn’t long before English named him Culinary Director of his 17-restaurant enterprise by the age of 29. He has also worked briefly with fellow renowned chef Gary Mennie. Conley was chosen by the Mandarin Oriental, Miami to head their newest restaurant, Azul, in 2005. Since then, he has won considerable acclaim for his creation of Azul’s contemporary cuisine.