MANILA, Philippines - Who is the French chef widely considered to be the greatest living seafood chef?
He was born in Antibes, France in 1965 and began his relationship with food in the most formative of all kitchens: his grandmother’s. Tasting, watching, and learning from his grandmother, he developed the Mediterranean palate that defines his cooking today.
When his family moved to Andorra just over the Spanish border, he expanded his repertoire to include Spanish flavors and ingredients — from fish to saffron. On holidays and birthdays, he insisted his family travel to the very best restaurants so he could sample their menus.
With encouragement from his parents, he attended culinary school in Perpignan and in 1982 moved to Paris to work at Le Tour D Argent,a temple of luxurious French cuisine that dates back more than 400 years.
After working at the Michelin three-star Jamin with Joel Robuchon, and a brief stint in military service, he moved to the US in 1989 to work as sous chef at Jean Louis in the Watergate Hotel in Washington, DC.
He moved to New York in 1991, working as a sous chef under David Bouley until he was hired as chef of Le Bernardin. In 1995, he earned a four-star rating from the New York Times; and seafood dishes such as
Spanish mackarel tartar with Osetra caviar, and sauce ravigote, and crispy Chinese spiced snapper with cepes, aged port wine, and Jerez vinegar have awarded it the maximum of three Michelin stars for excellence in cuisine.
Le Berardin, which was named GQ’s Best Restaurant in America in 1997 and Outstanding Restaurant of the Year by the James Beard Foundation in 1998, is often referred to as the Temple of Seafood.
He then lent his name, talents, and several members of his team to the Ritz Carlton Grand Cayman’s Blue and Periwinkle restaurants. Blue received a AAA Five Diamond Award, the only restaurant in the Caribbean to receive this rating, and features a three- course prix-fixed menu by tradition, as well as a six- course taster menu and ala carte selection.
His new restaurants include Weekend Bistro and the Ritz Carlton in Washington DC, and 10 Arts in Ritz Carlton Philadelpia in 2008.
He has co-authored several books: Le Berdardin Cookbook with Maguy Le Coze, A Return to Cooking with Michael Ruhlman, and On the Line: the Stations, the Heat, the Cooks, the Costs, the Chaos, and the Triumphs with Christine Muhkle.
A recipient of many culinary awards, including the Top Chef in New York City in 1998 and Outstanding Chef of the Year in 2003 by the James Beard Foundation, he has many philanthropic projects. He is chair of City Harvest’s Food Council, which aims to end hunger in communities throughout New York City, and is president of the Jean-Louis Palladin Foundation, which develops programs to increase the understanding and appreciation of high-quality ingredients among young chefs and food professionals. For the past three years, he has hosted the Tibetan Aid Project’s Taste & Tribute New York Benefit Dinner and Auction in Le Barnardin.
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Last week’s question: Who is the American architect who helped define the 20th-century skyline after Word War II with works like the Secretariat of the United Nations and the Avery Fisher Hall of the Lincoln Center?
Answer: Max Abramovitz
Winner: Glenn Suarez of QC.