Test your Design IQ
MANILA, Philippines – Who is the French-born chef who introduced Americans to a whole new experience in pastries and French cuisine through his pastry shop and restaurants? He also designed the French menu for the cafe of the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC.
He was born in Brittany, France, in March 1948 and was raised in Champagne. He is said to have realized his calling when he caught a glimpse of a restaurant kitchen at the age of eight. “The white hats, the aprons, and all the food I fell in love,” he says of the experience.
At 14, he apprenticed in a restaurant-run patisserie in Champagne. Three years later, he moved to Paris, where he quickly rose to the top position of Gaston Lenotre’s esteemed pastry shop.
In 1975, an opportunity to relocate to the US presented itself, and he moved to Santa Fe, New Mexico, where he opened a small eatery serving simple menus along with his delicious pastries. Honing his craft and experiencing great success, he soon discovered that ownership afforded him more creativity, and he eventually bought the shop.
Despite his achievement, he soon came to terms with the fact that “Santa Fe was not a dream for an ambitious young chef,” and he looked to the West Coast.
In 1977, he moved to Los Angeles where he opened another pastry shop, and he used the profits to eat in France’s three-star restaurants, and solidifying his desire to move beyond pastry, and train himself to be a chef over the next 10 years.
In 1987, he opened Citrus where, as executive chef and owner, he found the freedom to adapt his native French cuisine to the tastes of Southern California. Citrus put him on the culinary map and in the same year, it was voted the Best Restaurant in the United States by Travelers magazine.
In 1988, he was inducted into the James Beard Foundation’s “Who’s Who” in American Food and Wine. The following year, he opened Citronelle, which offered a menu similar to Citrus, but with a moreelegant atmosphere in the Santa Barbara Inn Hotel in Santa Barbara. He later opened Bistro M in San Francisco, Citronelle in Biltmore, Philadelphia, and the Latham Hotel in Georgetown.
Ten years later, he opened Central in Washington DC, where he expertly combines well-known traditional American favorites with a unique French touch. The customary beef burger is turned into a succulent lobster feast, crispy friend chicken served with mustard sauce, short ribs prepared with a tangy steak sauce.
He designed a French menu for the Cafe of the National Gallery of Art in Washington DC, which is currently being used.
He has written best-selling cooking books like Home Cooking with a French Accent and Happy in the Kitchen, the Craft of Cooking and the Art of Eating, and has appeared on television with episodes on Baking with Julia, Great Chefs, Great Cities, and Chef’s Story.
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Last week’s question: Who is the 20th century architect who greatly influenced American corporate and industrial architecture with landmark works like the Lever House, the Chase Manhattan Bank in New York, and the curve-fronted office towers between 57th and 58th Streets in New York?
Answer: Gordon Bunshaft
Winner: Louella Estabillo of San Pedro, Laguna
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Text your answer to 0917-9498721 with your name and address. One winner will be chosen through a raffle of texts with the correct answer. The winner will receive P2,000 worth of SM gift certificates for use at Our Home, SM Department Store, or SM Supermarket. They can claim their prize at Our Home in SM Megamall. Call the store manager at 634-1950, 634-1943. Bring photocopies of two valid IDs and a clipping of the Design Quiz issue in which you appear as winner.
