Chef Michael Ballon opened the Castle Street Cafe in 1989, after 10 years cooking in New York City.

Located in downtown Great Barrington next to the historic Mahaiwe Theater, The Cafe has received rave reviews from the day it opened.

Prior to moving to Great Barrington, Ballon cooked in New York, as Executive Chef at Lavin's , Sofi, Wood's, The New York City Bar Association, and Plum's, a full service catering company

Michael is also The Roundtable Chef on WAMC Public Radio, where he hosts a bi weekly cooking show which is broadcast over a large area of New York State and western New England. Recipes with photos appear bi weekly on the Public Radio web site.

Michael’s food essays also appear monthly in Berkshire Homestyle Magzine, a regional lifestyle publication distributed in the Berkshires and Albany area.

He was voted Berkshire Grown’s chef of the year in 2000