2011 chef and restaurateur round up

Check out the restaurants we hit up this year and the many chefs/restaurateurs that we had the privilege to sit down with.

City Tavern’s chef Jessica Christensen and her craft beer pairings

After being inspired by a man that cooked food at San Quentin State Prison, Jessica Christensen decided to try her hands in the culinary world. After years of working in fine dining establishments like the Ritz Carlton and the Montage, chef Jessica now has a place she calls home. City Tavern is located in downtown Culver City and has been around for less than a year, but Jessica has already made quite the reputation for her dinner pairings with beers from local breweries. Read more.

‘The Royce at the Langham’s’ Chef de Cuisine David Féau

Chef David Féau‘s long list of culinary accomplishments range from Corporate Executive Chef of the Patina group, former protégé of Guy Savoy, and he was named one of the six best chefs in France under 30 by Le Chef Magazine. Chef David now finds himself as the Chef de Cuisine of The Royce at the Langham Huntington Hotel in Pasadena, CA introducing a new kind of fine dining cuisine to the Angeleno palate. Read more.

The Tripel: food and drink balancing act with chef Brooke Williamson

The Tripel in Playa del Rey, CA, is a bar and restaurant opened earlier this year by chef/couple Nick Roberts and Brooke Williamson. The Tripel is their third project, Beechwood in Venice being their first followed by Hudson House in Redondo Beach. We visited Brooke during one of their newly available lunch hours to chat about how she became a chef, beer cocktails and the impeccable marriage of beer and food. Read more.

Mendocino Farms: stirring your inner foodie

From their humble beginnings starting at a failed Starbucks location in Downtown, Los Angeles, Mendocino Farms has now opened its 4th location in West Hollywood, CA offering their artisanal sandwiches, wraps, salads, and soups for lunch and dinner. Read more.

Interview with ‘Take a Bao’s’ Executive Chef Gavin Portsmouth

If you’ve been to the food court in Century City then you’ve more than likely seen the original Take a Bao, an Asian inspired, quick casual, bun centered eatery. With the opening of their big brother in Studio City, Take a Bao brings their buns into a finer dining arena.

We had a chat with Executive Chef Gavin Portsmouth about the new venture, his childhood, and sleep deprivation. Read more.

How Cecconi’s Executive Chef Andrea Cavaliere celebrates Thanksgiving

Originally from Turin, Italy, Andrea Cavaliere has cooked around the world. From England to New York and now Los Angeles, he’s been working for the SoHo House Group for seven years, an English hospitality company that operates hotels, private clubs and restaurants around the world. Andrea is not only responsible for Cecconi’s in West Hollywood, he spends about ten days out of the month overseeing the kitchen operations at Soho Beach House, a private members’ club, in South Beach and New York. So, What does a busy chef like Andrea Cavaliere do during Thanksgiving? Read more.

Neveux Artisan Creamery scooping sweet and savory ice creams

Here to “save Los Angeles from frozen yogurt” with his housemade, sweet and savory ice creams is owner and creator Leo Neveux of Neveux Artisan Creamery & Espresso Bar in Los Angeles, CA. Neveux Artisan Creamery focuses on flavors that are out of the box using both sweet and savory ingredients providing Angelenos with a different experience. Read more.

Sitting down with restaurateur Will Karges of The Six

Jake King and Will Karges, two guys that are no strangers to the restaurant industry. The newly opened, “Prohibition-era inspired” restaurant The Six in Studio City, CA, might be called “Six” but it’s far from a number representing the undertakings of co-owner Will Karge. The Six is Will’s 16th endeavor and the second of its kind, the first Six opened in West L.A. in 2010. It’s also the fifth collaborating project for the two. Read more.

Motif: cafe and high end retail store

Beverly Hills welcomes Motif, a unique shopping destination and lifestyle store conveniently attached to Cafe Motif, where you can have a mid day snack or a healthy and affordable meal and shop through an eclectic selection of goods. As co-owner Sasha Shokrian tells us, “we chose the name Motif because we didn’t want to stick to any certain pattern, the pattern is there is no pattern.” Motif provides a wide variety of art, furniture, and haut couture as well as affordable items in their retail store. Read more.

Michael Young of Ombra: an accidental chef

Chef Michael Young of Ombra in Studio City, CA has been cooking for nearly 19 years, but he wasn’t always into cooking. With a diverse upbringing from his family owning sandwich shops in Brooklyn to playing college soccer in Boston and going to law school in California, Michael somehow ended up owning his own restaurant. We followed chef around the kitchen as he showed us how to make homemade ravioli, shared his thoughts on wine, the Ombra concept and soccer. Read more.

Chef Greg Stillman of Ra Pour: a culinary sponge

Graduate of CIA, veteran of French Laundry and long time Patina chef, chef Greg Stillman has been around the culinary scene. Everywhere he goes, even his travels, he brings back something to put in his culinary tool belt. We’re not talking just about inspiration or technique, it’s whole dishes and concepts for chef.

We sat down with Greg at Ra Pour in Rancho Cucamonga, CA, where he works as Executive Chef, and discussed life at French Laundry, earliest food memory and California love. Read more.

Papilles’ executive chef Tim Carey: bistronomy and fishology

Last seen cooking in Patina, Tim Carey, Executive Chef of Papilles is part chef, part fisherman, and part Dodger fan. Working tirelessly to prepare for the opening, we were able to get in a quick word with Tim and discussed fishing, his culinary journey, and bistronomy at Papilles. Read more.

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