(clockwise, starting bottom left)
George Mendes
Chef-owner, Aldea
MOTTO:
“Stay focused and pay attention to detail.”
FESTIVAL EVENTS:
-Perfectly Paired Dinner at Tristan
-“Cooking” Up a Wine List
-Flavor Boosts
BEST ADVICE TO YOUNG CHEFS: “Keep your head down, work quietly, work hard, and listen, listen, listen!”
Christina Tosi
Pastry chef, Momofuku Milk Bar
MOTTO:
“Don’t take yourself too seriously!”
FESTIVAL EVENTS:
-Take on Cake!
-The New York Times Presents Celebrity Authors Reception
BEST PART OF BEING A PASTRY CHEF: "I work with my best friends and we lose sanity and sleep over desserts."
Tory McPhail
Executive chef, Commander’s Palace
MOTTO:
“Embrace the vast history of Louisiana food and culture and reinvent it everyday.”
FESTIVAL EVENT:
-Perfectly Paired Dinner at Magnolias
SECRET TO A GOOD RECIPE: “Recipes aren’t just a collection of ingredients. They need to be greater than the sum of their parts so that as you eat a dish, you can be inspired by the journey.”
Rajat Parr
Sommelier, RN74 San Francisco
MOTTO:
“Serve fine wine and make every guest’s experience special.”
FESTIVAL EVENT:
-Perfectly Paired DInner at FIG
-Winning Wine Lists
-The New York Times Presents Celebrity Authors Reception
BIGGEST MISCONCEPTION ABOUT WINE: “That to be good, wine has to be expensive.”
Andrew Carmellini Chef-owner,
Locanda Verde & The Dutch
MOTTO:
“A good cook brings his own life to the table.”
FESTIVAL EVENT:
-Food + Wine with a View: A Night in Italy
THE MOST IMPORTANT THING TO REMEMBER WHEN COOKING: “You can be as studious and as hardworking as the next guy, but if you don't lend that personal flavor, that soul, everything else falls flat.”
