Chef Johnson has been featured in national publications including Gourmet Magazine, Savour, and Wine Spectator.

He is Clayton Chamber of Commerce's Business Man of the year 2006.

Chef Michael Johnson has used his creative energy to produce an unusual blend of restaurants that have become known for their unique appearance and innovative dishes, restaurants that have changed the dining experience in St. Louis.

Johnson's culinary career began with a degree from the New England Culinary Institute in Vermont, recently voted the best cooking school by the International association of Culinary Professionals. His goal upon graduating was to work with some of the best chefs in the world, before fulfilling his dream of opening his own restaurant.

He began this journey as a personal assistant to Emeril Lagasse in New Orleans then went on to work with Charlie Trotter in Chicago, Daniel Joly in Vail, Joachim Splichal, in Napa Valley, Phillipe Duvalle in Chartres, France, and then finally inspired by his travels and culinary education he returned to St. Louis in 1997 to open his first restaurant, Café Mira, serving contemporary-global cuisine.

Since then, Johnson has opened a variety of additional restaurants. His endeavors include BARcelona, a classic Spanish tapas joint, Greek tapas hotspot MOMO's, Cajun-Creole-Cuban combo Boogaloo, and his newest, a French café Roxane. He also participated in the creation of the dessert café Cyrano's. Currently, he is opening a second location of BARcelona in Indianapolis, and plans to open five more in the next three years.

During this time he has received numerous awards and honors, including being voted best chef by the RFT and the Business Man's Journal, as well as national recognition from Gourmet Magazine, Bon Appetit, and the New York Times.

Johnson's desire is to create restaurants that have a unique and interesting atmosphere, places that people haven't experienced, and to combine that concept with fun service and outstanding food.