Age: 43. Why is she rising? Since joining Avado in 1985, Waldrep played a significant role in the development of more than 240 Applebee's Restaurants. After Avado sold off Applebee's, Waldrep continued her development efforts for Avado's other...

Age: 37. Why he's rising: Tuttleman opened a Kahunaville nightclub in Wilmington in the early 1990s. He's since developed the concept into a five-unit theme restaurant chain. He's expanding the concept by targeting second-tier restaurant markets...

Age: 34. Why he's rising: Adjey is not a cook, he's an artist whose beautiful food is surpassed only by the sophistication of his flavors. Background: A native of Toronto, Adjey is a CIA graduate who cooked at several high profile Toronto...

Age: 30. Why he's rising: This ranch-trained chef prepares simple, flavorful food in the tradition of chuckwagon cooking gone upscale. The restaurant is named for the ranch in Edna Ferber's book, Giant, (also made into an Academy Award-winning...

JOSIAH CITRIN AND RAPHAEL LUNETTA Chef/owners of JiRaffe, Santa Monica, Calif...

Brad Blum and Bob MockPresident and Executive Vice President (Operations), respectively, Olive Garden Restaurants, Orlando...