Life in a Long Exposure Award-Winning Chef Peter Berley Grows Roots in Millerton
By James Salomon

This is where Peter Berley loses himself and finds himself, taking walks on Merwin Road in Millerton. The corn is high right now, and the vistas are beautiful. Peter’s relatively new to the community, but is certainly pitching in his talents by occasionally giving cooking demonstrations at Tri-Corner F.E.E.D in the village. “The pillars of my life are my garden, my oven, and my family.” Berley served as executive chef of Angelica Kitchen in New York’s East Village throughout the ’90s, then garnered both James Beard and IACP awards for his first book, The Modern Vegetarian Kitchen. He then went on to write Fresh Food Fast and The Flexitarian Table. He’s semi-retired now, spending time with his family, enjoying meals and music at their home. His guitar collection includes an acoustic archtop, rosewood dreadnought, Spanish classical, an array of electric guitars and a flatback mandolin. “Guitars are like people, each with its own personality.” He also inherited his mother’s baby grand that his father gave her for their engagement instead of a ring. Cool fact: His father was obsessed with art photography and began collecting in the ’60s, eventually building one of the largest private collections of European and American photography masters in the U.S. He then began publishing portfolios with Jacques Lartigue, Brassaï, Berenice Abbott, Edward Weston, Robert Doisneau, and other heavyweights. Lartigue even took Peter’s portrait as a young man. In that spirit, I’m going with black and white for this talented, interesting dude.