Chef Josh Lanning is Cooking Where He’s Most Comfortable

by Mike Rundle

The path

From reading cookbooks on the shelves at Barnes & Noble to some of the best restaurants in the world, Chef Josh Lanning has had a unique path to an acclaimed career in food.

Now General Manager and Executive Chef of Woolly Bugger at Sankoty Lakes, Lanning was born in Keokuk, Iowa, and attended Richwoods High School after moving to Peoria early in childhood. He describes himself as a “hands-on” person, playing sports and taking interest in the arts—but a future in the kitchen was never at the forefront of his mind.

the infatuation

“I used to be one of those Barnes & Noble nerds who’d go and have a coffee and pull books off the shelf and read,” said Lanning. “Next thing you know, it’s all cookbooks, and I just got infatuated.”

With a newfound interest in cooking, Lanning set off for the International Culinary Center in New York, and there, a career was set in motion.

The turning point

Lanning, who would go on to work for Chef Kyle Connaughton at Michelin three-star SingleThread Farms in Healdsburg, California, was in the Peoria area as Sous Chef for Chef Josh Adams at June in Peoria Heights when he wrote the email that would change the course of his life. Still adapting to a leadership role in the kitchen, Lanning says his time at June made him question his ability.

“By the end of my time at June, I felt pretty beat up because I was so hard on myself,” said Lanning. “So what did I do? I was like, ‘If I can go to the best restaurant in the world and do well, then I can do this.’”