Dan Meiser, 29, general manager, Firebox, Hartford, CT

Why we're impressed: From his days in culinary school, Meiser's intention was to bring Manhattan-level dining to his home state of Connecticut. Has he succeeded? In the words of Gourmet magazine, “Hartford never had it so good.”

Ladder climbing: Internship, Daniel Boulud's famed Restaurant Daniel, New York (“It was the ultimate opportunity to see how food works at that level.”); Cafe Boulud, under Andrew Carmellini (“It was like playing for the Yankees,” says Meiser, of working for Carmellini, who won a James Beard award while Meiser was there); Max Restaurant Group, Hartford, where Meiser became the youngest-ever general manager in the successful MCO's 20-year history.

Why a GM job: “My heart and soul is in the kitchen, but I knew from the beginning that my goal was to have my own restaurants. I knew I had to learn how to run a business to be in the best position to succeed.”

Hot opportunity: While at Max Restaurant Group, a community redevelopment nonprofit group, the Melville Charitable Trust, asked Meiser and Firebox's now-executive chef, Jason Collin, 33, to run the new restaurant they were bankrolling, Firebox. “I wasn't sure it would work,” recalls Meiser of the off-the-beaten path location in the city's Frog Hollow district, near the state capitol. ”But it's a great neighborhood and business and the reviews have been great.” The best part: Meiser's and Collins's contracts give them the option to buy the restaurant.

Critical acclaim: Zagat-listed in its first year, Firebox also was voted Best New Restaurant in Hartford County by Connecticut magazine; It also received a “very good” rating from The New York Times just months after opening.

What the future holds: To become a Firebox partner. Meiser says his goal was always “to have the kind of restaurant I'm in now, focused on seasonal and local ingredients. We really made it a point to let the ingredients shine for themselves, take what we know to be fantastic comfort food and produce it at the highest level. There was I time I was into extravagant garnishes, dramatic platings. That's not important to me now, and that transfers to the front of the house as well. It's comfortable fine dining.”

Jelena Musa, 24, general manager, Restaurant Avondale, Beaver Creek, CO

Why we're impressed: At 20, Musa was managing the dining room at Larkspur Restaurant in Vail. Now she's running the show at its sister restaurant, the new Avondale. She works the room with the air of a seasoned pro.

Ladder climbing: A native of Bosnia & Herzegovina and raised in Croatia, Musa cut her teeth at the Hotel Petka and Hotel Excalibur. Once in the U.S., she became dining room manager at La Casa del Zorro in San Diego.

Her peers say: She's a warm and caring leader, but she is black and white, and will never sacrifice her standards.

David Ogren, 24, executive chef, Ammos Estiatorio, New York

Why we're impressed: Layered flavors, visual drama and a refined approach to Greek cooking belie the chef's tender age. Ogren also conceptualized and planned the menu for the Hudson Cafe market, opening this month at The Helena in New York City. The restaurant/bar/retail operation specializes in American comfort food.

Cooking style: Elevated Greek with Mediterranean and North African influences. “I like very clean, ingredient-driven cooking. I don't like to alter a delicious beet. Just showcase the ingredient. We focus on sustainability”

10 years from now: “I want to get into the ownership role at some point. I joke about this, but I want a good taco stand. Fine dining is fun, but I'm a casual person.”

Marco Ferraro, 29, executive chef, Wish, Miami

Why we're impressed: Ferraro was chosen after an exhaustive international search to head Wish, the Mobil four-star, AAA four-diamond restaurant at the Todd Oldham-designed The Hotel, one of South Beach's iconic properties.

Education and training: Born in Calabria, Italy, and raised in Brooklyn, NY, Ferraro attended the French Culinary Institute in Manhattan.

Mentor: Noel Mantel, Le Mantel, Mougins, France, and Les Muscadin, Cannes. “He transformed me into a chef, and mentored me in how to work things properly.”

Cooking style: Globally inspired contemporary American that's “straightforward, often with an element of surprise,” Ferraro says. “Fresh, seasonal, bright and vibrant, simple cuisine where the product really stands out.”

Signature dishes: Cold soups, including last season's heirloom tomato gazpacho and this season's cold corn soup. “I use good products, and the right techniques to get the true flavor out of them. There's just a hint of the other ingredients.”

Ladder climbing: Le Mantel, Cannes, France; Le Muscandin, Mougins, France; Jean-Georges, New York; Jack's La Jolla, San Diego.

10 years from now: “I would like to see myself overseeing several different restaurants or properties, being involved in all of the aspects of a business, either on my own, or with a company where I can grow.”

Sam Burman, 28, chef de cuisine, Bluprint, Chicago

Why we're impressed: Burman can transition from a wagyu burger with Bloody Mary ketchup to hydrocolloids, agar-agar and other gastronomic tricks at the drop of a hat. The contemporary American menu he developed with executive chef Doran Payne reflects Northern Italian and Mediterranean influences.

Critical acclaim: “Bluprint is a stylish, eye-catching dining room with artistically plated (but down-to-earth) dishes.”

10 years from now: “I'd like to have my own small restaurant here in Chicago.”

Daniel Snukal, 29, chef/owner 3 on Fourth, Santa Monica, CA

Why we're impressed: With no formal culinary training, Snukal quickly made his first restaurant a local foodie destination with sophisticated, carefully edited multicultural menus. He hosts monthly tastings with food guests with themes such as “Chocolate & Wine” and “Salt.”

Learned to cook: “Mainly at home and from family friends who are chefs. I learn well on my own. When I was about 11, I started taking home restaurant menus (from travels around the world with his university professor parents) and tried to re-create them.”

Cooking style: Contemporary European, Asian and American

Cooking and music: “Every player has the same notes to hit, but it's the choices, the combinations, the nuances that distinguish one guitarist from another.”

Signature dish: Sablefish marinated in maple syrup (a nod to his Canadian roots) and sake and served with shiitake mushrooms and bok choy.

Mentor: The famed Masa Takayama (Ginza Sushi-ko, Los Angeles, Masa, New York City). “He and my father have been friends for a long time. I'd hang around the restaurant and watch him cook as long as he would let me. When I was opening my restaurant, he made a fist and told me, ‘Your concept must be like this.’”

Ladder climbing: catering chef: Patina Catering, Jack White Catering and Gai Klass Catering (all Los Angeles).

First job in foodservice: “I worked in a kosher hospital kitchen. I did a little bit of everything.”

What the future holds: “Doing what I do now, but in British Columbia.”