For many years, Samuelsson was the figurehead of the upscale Swedish restaurant on Manhattan’s East 55th Street, beginning when he was only 24 years old. An alleged fight with owner and old friend Håkan Swahn, seems to be the reason Samuelsson is taking off. “We ought to have parted ways long ago,” Swahn said to DI.

Samuelsson became famous during his sojourn at Aquavit, his fame has meant he has cooked food at the White House – but fame hasn’t been that great for Aquavit. “On the contrary,” Swahn continued, “working with a very famous chef creates problems. Marcus quickly got picked up by media, but he hasn’t created anything at Aquavit since 2002.” Marcus Samuelsson is now putting his efforts into the restaurant Red Rooster in Harlem, but has a 15% share left at Aquavit. “I’m not planning on selling,” he tells Dagens Industri.

Here's a link to our portrait of Marcus for Nordic Reach from 2005: http://www.nordicreach.com/its_about/lifestyle/59/