Chef Info

Christian Madsen is the executive chef at six.one.six in the JW Marriott Grand Rapids and oversees restaurant and the hotel’s other venues; the destination lounge, Mixology, in-room dining and catering services for one of the largest meeting venues in the region. Prior to six.one.six, Madsen took the lead in opening Ruth’s Chris Steak House in the Amway Grand Plaza.

Madsen has a long history with the Amway Grand Plaza, and previously lead The 1913 Room, which received Michigan’s first and only five-diamond status from AAA under his leadership and maintained it until the restaurant closed in 2011. The 1913 Room was a two-time winner of the Grand Rapids Magazine “Restaurant of the Year” award, and is a five-time recipient of the magazine’s “Fine Dining Award.”

Throughout his career, which spans over two decades, Madsen has been personally recognized for his culinary ability with numerous accolades, including “Best Chef” from Grand Rapids Magazine” in 2008. He is a bronze-medal winner in the American Culinary Federation (ACF) cooking competition and has been a featured chef in the ACF “Seven Courses of Gold” dinners for the past three years. Madsen’s recipes were published in the Savor Michigan Cookbook, and he was named the Michigan Hotel, Motel, and Resort Association’s “Culinary Star of the Year” in 2005.

As a Michigan native, Chef Madsen is dedicated to helping his community and has been a volunteer mentor to the Fruitport High School Culinary team in Fruitport, MI for six years. Under his guidance, the team has claimed the state title at the ProStart Invitational for five consecutive years and claimed three top-five finishes at the national competition.