Tag Archives: Spago

Show 655, November 29, 2025: Byron Lazaroff-Puck, President, Wolfgang Puck Fine Dining

Posted on by
Bryan Lazaroff Puck of Wolfgang Puck Fine Dining

“The name Wolfgang Puck is synonymous with the best of restaurant hospitality and the ultimate in all aspects of the culinary arts. Our guest, Byron Lazaroff-Puck, is the President of Wolfgang Puck Fine Dining.  The award-winning restaurants in the Wolfgang Puck Fine Dining Group include Chinois (Santa Monica); Carama by Wolfgang Puck (Las Vegas); CUT (Bahrain Bay, Beverly Hills, DC, Las Vegas, London, and Singapore; Spago (Beverly Hills, Istanbul, Las Vegas, Maui, Bodrum and Singapore); re Asian Cuisine (Bahrain Bay; Wolfgang Puck Bar & Grill (Las Vegas and Orlando; and Merois (Los Angeles).

“Wolfgang Puck has built a brand that encompasses three companies: Wolfgang Puck Fine Dining Group, owned, operated, and licensed fine dining restaurants consisting of 21 restaurants in 6 countries; Wolfgang Puck Worldwide which has a portfolio of 79 casual and fast-casual restaurants, as well as branded consumer products; and Wolfgang Puck Catering which is the catering service business which operates as a subsidiary of Compass Group. Wolfgang Puck’s brand carries an undeniable cachet, synonymous with a bold, innovative style of cooking that has redefined the fine dining industry. His trademark dishes, coupled with his unmistakable panache and personality, has revolutionized the culinary trade.”

“Born and raised in Los Angeles, Byron Lazaroff-Puck is the son of world-renowned Chef Wolfgang Puck and visionary designer Barbara Lazaroff. His upbringing immersed him in the pioneering world of hospitality and design, igniting a passion for culinary arts and service excellence. At just 12 years old, Byron began his journey as a dishwasher at Spago Beverly Hills, laying the foundation for a career marked by passion, discipline, and ambition.”

“Today, as President of the Wolfgang Puck Fine Dining Group, Byron’s focus is on leading the company’s next phase of international growth and culinary development, building on the legacy of Spago, Chinois, CUT and CARAMÁ to expand their global reach while remaining true to the brand’s DNA of excellence and innovation.

Byron just returned from the official opening of the spectacular rooftop Spago in Shanghai at The St. Regis on the Bund. Last Weekend Byron was part of the uber exclusive F-1 Bellagio VIP Fountain Club viewing experience showcasing the food of an incredible assemblage all-star celebrity and Michelin chefs including Jose Andres, Thomas Keller and Wolfgang Puck in a luxe 3-day package.

Show 574, April 20, 2024: Nancy Silverton, Executive Chef, Restaurateur and Cookbook Author

Posted on by
Nancy Silverton of Mozza Restaurant Group

“Acclaimed Restaurateur and Chef (and James Beard Award recipient) Nancy Silverton is the co-owner of Pizzeria Mozza in Los Angeles and Newport Beach as well as Osteria Mozza, Mozza2Go, and chi SPACCA in Los Angeles. Silverton also founded the world-renowned La Brea Bakery as well as Campanile Restaurant, an institution that Angelenos cherished for decades.”

“Silverton has worked with some of the nation’s most notable and influential chefs including Jonathan Waxman at Michael’s Restaurant and Wolfgang Puck at Spago. She has served as a mentor to numerous others who have gone on to become award-winning chefs and restaurant owners themselves.”

Silverton’s newest cookbook (her 11th) is The Cookie That Changed My Life and More Than 100 Other Classic Cakes, Cookies, Muffins, and Pies That Will Change Yours. As the original pastry chef at Wolfgang Puck’s Spago (celebrating their 40th Anniversary this year,) she made us rethink how we make and eat bread. Now this “pastry doyenne” (Los Angeles Times) has not only returned to her roots, she has surpassed anything she has done before. Biting into a particularly delicious peanut butter cookie one day from Friends & Family’s Roxana Jullapat, she and had an epiphany: every single thing we bake should taste this good. And so she decided to return to her roots, and set to work perfecting the rest of the American baking canon.”

Nancy Silverton now invites all foodies to the C-CAP Los Angeles (Careers through Culinary Arts Program) Gala on Friday, May 17 at Jonathan Club DTLA!

Join her for a glittering evening of inspired food and drink to benefit C-CAP Los Angeles’ students and programming. Longtime C-CAP supporter and pioneering chef Nancy Silverton is creating a delicious multi-course menu along with Jonathan Club’s heralded Executive Chef Andreas Roller.

The evening begins at 6:30 p.m. with a social hour on the rooftop’s Great Lawn. Guests will enjoy passed hors d’oeuvres and select premium wines and craft cocktails while overlooking the beautiful vista of downtown Los Angeles.

At 7:30 p.m. guests will then make their way to the Grand Ballroom for a spectacular, multi-course wine-paired seated dinner. The program includes remarks from Chef Silverton, C-CAP students and alumni and culminates with the C-CAP Live Auction and a decadent dessert finale.

Nancy Silverton is our guest previewing what’s on the May 17th menu along with an update on Max and Helen’s, a diner concept in Larchmont Village she is creating with Producer and Food TV Personality Phil Rosenthal.

Nancy gracious talks to us from the road as she is on her way driving to Ojai for her special Dinner with Chef Jonathan Waxman at The Farmhouse at the Ojai Valley Inn.

Show 283, July 28, 2018: 5th Annual Stu and The Kids Benefit at Vibiana, DTLA

Posted on by

Stuart SkverskyThe 5th annual Stu and the Kids Fundraiser, an exceptional Thai-flavored Food & Wine Festival hosted by Chef Stuart Skversky (ex-Spago) with the help of his high-profile chef friends, returns to Vibiana in DTLA on Sunday, August 5, 2018. Proceeds will fund scholarships for Hill Tribe kids in Chaing Mai, Thailand. This is the 4th year we’ve proudly supported this significant Benefit.

In 2009, Stuart Skversky, a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America and a rising-star chef, made a dramatic life change by giving up a promising chef career in Los Angeles to move to Chiang Mai, becoming a full-time volunteer at the Wat Dan Chan (a local Buddhist temple), teaching local children English, cooking and baking. Recognizing a need to help prepare these high-risk Hill Tribe kids following their graduation, he founded Stu and the Kids to better prepare them for adulthood, helping them get into a university or technical college and giving them the tools for an independent future.

Proceeds from this event go directly to the children’s education, school uniforms, supplies, housing, food and tuition for higher education. Now in their ninth year of fundraising throughout the world, Stu and The Kids has raised over $500,000 for the charity, including last year’s astounding record of $158,000 accumulated from the Los Angeles festival, fundraising on the east coast and online donations during 2017.

Stu and The Kids supervises 29 kids, including eleven that received scholarships in 2018 to support education and jobs in accounting, business management, in-home elder care, cooking and fashion and textiles. The charity hopes to increase the awards to twelve, four-year university scholarships in the coming year.

The Thai restaurant community in Los Angeles is embracing this Benefit. Sarintip “Jazz” Singsanong of Jitlada fame will be in attendance and cooking.

Tickets for advance general admission, VIP admission and kids may be purchased online. General Admission in advance is $125.

Executive Director & Founder, Stuart Skversky provides the preview.

Show 251, December 9, 2017: “Las Vegas Strong” Show Preview with Co-Host Andy Harris

Posted on by

Now a VIP high roller’s preview of this Saturday’s intriguing, all-Las Vegas show special. We’re going behind-the-scenes with some of Fabulous Las Vegas’ most fascinating food-related personalities. We’re with you live every Saturday morning throughout The Holidays. It’s not, with profuse apologies, for dieters. If we’re successful we will always leave you incredibly hungry and thirsty. In our case, upon careful reflection, that’s probably a pretty good thing…

Rick Moonen is one of the very few celebrity chefs with high profile restaurants in Las Vegas who actually lives in Fabulous Las Vegas. His two restaurants in The Shoppes at Mandalay Place are RM Seafood and Rx Boiler Room. Chef Rick is our guest.

Mike Minor is back as the Executive Chef of Mary Sue Milliken’s and Susan Feniger’s original Border Grill Las Vegas (launched in 1999) located by the lazy river adjacent to Mandalay Beach at the Mandalay Bay Resort on The Strip. Chef Mike is a long-time Las Vegas veteran and has a huge locals’ following. We’ll meet him.

Chef Brian Howard developed a loyal following during his tenure at Comme Ca located in The Cosmopolitan (“just the right amount of wrong.”) He’s now branched out on his own with Sparrow + Wolf located in Las Vegas’s bustling Chinatown just off The Strip on Spring Mountain Road. Chef Brian refers to his establishment as “Neighborhood Cookery & Libations.” Chef Brian joins us to talk about his first seven months of operations.

The delightfully opinionated Al Mancini took on the dream assignment for any food journalist of becoming the food reporter for The Las Vegas Review-Journal just about a year ago. He’s an unabashed fan of Fabulous Las Vegas. Al is celebrating a B-I-G Birthday this weekend and we pull him away from the festivities for a chat.

Stowe Shoemaker is the dean of the William F. Harrah College of Hospitality at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV.) Prior to being named dean, Shoemaker served as a Lincy Professor at UNLV and the Donald Hubbs Distinguished Professor at the Conrad N. Hilton College of Hotel Administration at the University of Houston. For many years he was a member of the executive education faculty at the Cornell University School of Hotel Administration, and for a time he maintained an appointment in the Division of Diagnostic Imagery at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. We’re in with The Dean.

As Senior Managing Partner of the Wolfgang Puck Fine Dining Group, Tom Kaplan has worked alongside Wolfgang Puck for nearly 36 years with his world-renowned restaurants. Tom started his lengthy association with Chef Wolfgang as Office Manager two months after the original Spago West Hollywood opened in 1982. His responsibilities include overall business management, strategic development, design, and construction supervision, and philanthropy for the company’s 28 domestic and international locations. Tom Kaplan is our guest.

The Mob Museum, the National Museum of Organized Crime and Law Enforcement, is a world-class destination in downtown Las Vegas. It presents an exciting and authentic view of the Mob’s impact on Las Vegas history and its unique imprint on America and the world. With tales so intriguing they need no embellishment, The Mob Museum reveals an insider’s look at the events and people on both sides of this continuing battle between organized crime and law enforcement. The Mob Museum’s Brenda Hengel>, Public Relations and Marketing Brand Manager, joins us.

All of this and heaping helpings of extra deliciousness on this week’s show!

December 9: #VegasStrong: A Tribute to Las Vegas Culinary Excellence

Posted on by

Podcasts

Segment One: “Las Vegas Strong” Show Preview with Co-Host Andy Harris
Segment Two: Celebrity Chef Rick Moonen, RM Seafood & Rx Boiler Room, Las Vegas
Segment Three: Chef Mike Minor, Border Grill Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas
Segment Four: Chef / Owner Brian Howard, Sparrow + Wolf, Chinatown, Las Vegas
Segment Five: Food Journalist Al Mancini, Las Vegas Review-Journal
Segment Six: Dean Stowe Shoemaker, William F. Harrah College of Hospitality, UNLV
Segment Seven: Tom Kaplan, Senior Managing Partner, Wolfgang Puck Fine Dining Group
Segment Eight: Brenda Hengel, Public Relations and Marketing Brand Manager, The Mob Museum, Las Vegas

Now an intriguing preview of this Saturday’s overflowing show. It’s our very special Las Vegas Strong! show. Keep in mind we’re with you live every Saturday morning throughout The Holidays. It’s not, with profuse apologies, for dieters. If we’re successful we will always leave you incredibly hungry and thirsty. In our case, upon careful reflection, that’s probably a pretty good thing…

Rick Moonen is one of the very few celebrity chefs with high profile restaurants in Las Vegas who actually lives in Fabulous Las Vegas. His two restaurants in The Shoppes at Mandalay Place are RM Seafood and RX Boiler Room. Chef Rick is our guest.

Mike Minor is the Executive Chef of Mary Sue Milliken’s and Susan Feniger’s original Border Grill Las Vegas (launched in 1999) located by the lazy river adjacent to Mandalay Beach at the Mandalay Bay Resort on The Strip. Chef Mike grew up in Las Vegas and has a huge locals’ following. We’ll meet him.

Chef Brian Howard developed a loyal following during his tenure at Comme Ca located in The Cosmopolitan. He’s now branched out on his own with Sparrow + Wolf located in Las Vegas’s bustling Chinatown just Off The Strip on Spring Mountain Road. Chef Brian refers to his establishment as “Neighborhood Cookery & Libations.” Chef Brian joins us to talk about his first seven months of operations.

The delightfully opinionated Al Mancini took on the dream assignment for any food journalist of becoming the food reporter for The Las Vegas Review-Journal just about a year ago. He’s an unabashed fan of Fabulous Las Vegas. Al is celebrating a B-I-G Birthday this weekend and we pull him away from the festivities for a chat.

Stowe Shoemaker is the dean of the William F. Harrah College of Hospitality at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV.) Prior to being named dean, Shoemaker served as a Lincy Professor at UNLV and the Donald Hubbs Distinguished Professor at the Conrad N. Hilton College of Hotel Administration at the University of Houston. For many years he was a member of the executive education faculty at the Cornell University School of Hotel Administration, and for a time he maintained an appointment in the Division of Diagnostic Imagery at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. We’re in with The Dean.

As Senior Managing Partner of the Wolfgang Puck Fine Dining Group, Tom Kaplan has worked alongside Wolfgang Puck for nearly 36 years with his world-renowned restaurants. Tom started his lengthy association with Chef Wolfgang as Office Manager two months after the original Spago West Hollywood opened in 1982. His responsibilities include overall business management, strategic development, design, and construction supervision, and philanthropy for the company’s 28 domestic and international locations. Tom Kaplan is our guest.

The Mob Museum, the National Museum of Organized Crime and Law Enforcement, is a world-class destination in downtown Las Vegas. It presents an exciting and authentic view of the Mob’s impact on Las Vegas history and its unique imprint on America and the world. With tales so intriguing they need no embellishment, The Mob Museum reveals an insider’s look at the events and people on both sides of this continuing battle between organized crime and law enforcement. The Mob Museum’s Brenda Hengel, Public Relations and Marketing Brand Manager, joins us.

All of this and heaping helpings of extra deliciousness on this week’s show!

Rick Moonen of rm seafood in Las VegasRick Moonen is one of the very few celebrity chefs with high profile restaurants in Las Vegas who actually lives in Fabulous Las Vegas. His two restaurants in The Shoppes at Mandalay Place are RM Seafood and Rx Boiler Room.

Since opening RM Seafood at The Shoppes at Mandalay Place in 2005, Master Chef Rick Moonen brings his expertise to The Strip by offering a unique dining experience with a thoughtful selection of seafood through his delectable dishes. Renowned for his passionate views on sustainable seafood, Chef Moonen creates an experience that features a vast array of flavor combinations designed to exemplify the natural qualities of fresh ingredients. Along with abundant offerings from the sea, the menu includes Wagyu beef, lamb, salads and other unique items such as seared foie gras and chicken san daniele.

Combining the alchemy of food and drink, Chef Rick Moonen’s Rx Boiler Room showcases his spin on classic comfort food, offering guests a variety of playful creations in small and large plate portions, ideal for a shared dining experience. Paired to elevate and complement the overall experience, the drink menu features an emporium of the finest spirits and innovative libations. Rx Boiler Room offers a modern reflection of the Victorian era, celebrating the steampunk sub-genre often associated with science-fiction and inspired by industrialized Western civilization during the 19th century.

Chef Rick is our guest.

Mike Minor of Border Grill in Las VegasMike Minor is the Executive Chef of Mary Sue Milliken’s and Susan Feniger’s original Border Grill Las Vegas (launched in 1999) located by the lazy river adjacent to Mandalay Beach at the Mandalay Bay Resort on The Strip. Chef Mike grew up in Las Vegas and has a huge locals’ following. We’ll meet him.

Ironically, it was a French restaurant where Chefs Mary Sue Milliken and Susan Feniger first tasted authentic Latin flavors. While guests were dining on escargot out front, in the back of the house Mary Sue and Susan were discovering the home cooking of Oaxaca and the Yucatan at staff meals prepared by their fellow cooks from Mexico. Unlike anything they had ever tasted in Mexican restaurants in the United States, the dishes were as varied and complex as the French fare the chefs were serving out front.

In 1985, Mary Sue and Susan packed a VW bug and took a road trip far south of the Mexican border. Never setting foot in a “fine restaurant,” they learned the recipes and techniques of market vendors and home cooks, from street corners in downtown Mexico City to back road family barbecues and taco stands along the beach. When they returned they opened Border Grill and “applied the same intelligence,” noted Los Angeles Magazine, “to green corn tamales and cactus-paddle tacos that other chefs might to a lobe of foie gras.” Border Grill quickly established a new standard for gourmet Mexican fare.

Brian Howard of Comme Ca in Las VegasChef Brian Howard developed a loyal following during his tenure at Comme Ca located in The Cosmopolitan. He’s now branched out on his own with Sparrow + Wolf located in Las Vegas’s bustling Chinatown just Off The Strip on Spring Mountain Road. Chef Brian refers to his establishment as “Neighborhood Cookery & Libations.”

Chef Brian Howard’ Sparrow + Wolf boasts cuisine from the heart using a modern hand. It features American cookery influenced by the culturally diverse neighborhoods of Chef Brian’s travels, classic training and Midwestern roots.

Throughout his 17-year culinary career in Las Vegas, star Chef Brian Howard earned his stripes working with some of the most popular restaurants on The Strip. He has gained the utmost respect from his colleagues and the city’s most prestigious food writers, including one who referred to Howard as “The Most Ambitious Chef in Las Vegas.” The culinary field is known as a profession of passion, and Howard is a bold example of that premise, having believed since he was 10 years old that cooking is in his blood.

Chef Brian attributes his varied influences to being surrounded by talented people, childhood memories, and his continuous hunger for learning new things every day. “I’ve always had a fight and desire in me to never give up, no matter how rocky the road,” says Howard.  “Perseverance has gotten me to where I am today and now I just want to create something for the people of Las Vegas, a city that has been good to me. I want to create food that I’d like to eat.”

Chef Brian joins us to talk about his first seven months of operations.

Al ManciniThe delightfully opinionated Al Mancini took on the dream assignment for any food journalist of becoming the food reporter for The Las Vegas Review-Journal just about a year ago. He’s an unabashed fan of Fabulous Las Vegas. He also faithfully covers the happenings in the revived Downtown Las Vegas including the vibrant restaurant scene there.

Al discovered his passion for food while living in New York City, where he attended law school by day, tended bar and made pizza at the infamous punk club CBGB by night, and explored the Big Apple’s dynamic dining scene during every spare moment in between.

Previously Al has written extensively about food and dining for numerous local, Las Vegas lifestyle publications. He is the co-creator of Eating Las Vegas – The 50 Essential Restaurants guidebook which launched with the 2011 Edition.

Al is celebrating a B-I-G Birthday this weekend and we pull him away from the festivities for a chat.

Stowe Shoemaker is the Dean of the William F Harrah College of Hotel Administration at University of Nevada Las VegasStowe Shoemaker is the dean of the William F. Harrah College of Hospitality at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV.) Prior to being named dean, Shoemaker served as a Lincy Professor at UNLV and the Donald Hubbs Distinguished Professor at the Conrad N. Hilton College of Hotel Administration at the University of Houston. For many years he was a member of the executive education faculty at the Cornell University School of Hotel Administration, and for a time he maintained an appointment in the Division of Diagnostic Imagery at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston.

Located in the heart of the hotel, gaming and tourism industries, UNLV’s William F. Harrah College of Hospitality is uniquely positioned to offer students the real-world skills they need to succeed in the dynamic field of hospitality.

Hospitality Hall, The College’s new $59 million, 93,500 square-foot building, will welcome students next year. Hospitality Hall will provide the setting and the resources students need to learn the fast-paced, ever changing world of hospitality. With faculty guidance and industry partnerships, Hospitality Hall will help set a new standard of excellence in hospitality education.

We’re in with The Dean.

Tom KaplanAs Senior Managing Partner of the Wolfgang Puck Fine Dining Group, Tom Kaplan has worked alongside Wolfgang Puck for nearly 36 years with his world-renowned restaurants. Tom started his lengthy association with Chef Wolfgang as Office Manager two months after the original Spago West Hollywood opened in 1982. His responsibilities include overall business management, strategic development, design, and construction supervision, and philanthropy for the company’s 28 domestic and international locations.

Since 1982, Puck and Kaplan have grown the company from several individual restaurants into a collection of restaurants known as the Wolfgang Puck Fine Dining Group. Primary brands include Spago, CUT, re/Asian Cuisine, and the Wolfgang Puck Bar & Grill. Over the years Kaplan has nurtured key strategic partnerships with luxury hotel brands and major casinos such as the Four Seasons, Dorchester Collection, MGM Resorts International and Las Vegas Sands.

The big Wolfgang Puck Las Vegas news is that after 25 years Spago Las Vegas, in 2018, will move to the former Olives location at The Bellagio, regarded as one of the best restaurant locations in Las Vegas.

Tom Kaplan is our guest.

Brenda HengelThe Mob Museum, the National Museum of Organized Crime and Law Enforcement, is a world-class destination in downtown Las Vegas. It presents an exciting and authentic view of the Mob’s impact on Las Vegas history and its unique imprint on America and the world. With tales so intriguing they need no embellishment, The Mob Museum reveals an insider’s look at the events and people on both sides of this continuing battle between organized crime and law enforcement.

True stories of Mob history are brought to life in a bold and contemporary style via engaging exhibits and multi-sensory experiences. The Mob Museum puts the visitor in the middle of the action through high-tech theater presentations, iconic one-of-a-kind artifacts and interactive, themed environments. The Mob Museum was ranked #20 out of 25 Top U.S. Museums in 2017 by TripAdvisor.

The Mob Museum features a variety of interactive exhibits, films and high-tech audio-visual displays that are periodically updated to reflect new information and acquisitions. Exhibits examine in great depth such topics as how organized crime persists today; how the Mob is perceived and portrayed in pop culture; how the battle against the Mob was fought with focus on important historic and law enforcement victories; an examination of Mob violence, corruption, conspiracy and murder; notable mobsters and Mob busters; an in-depth look at Las Vegas as the ultimate “open city” that attracted mobsters and how organized crime operated “the skim” inside casinos; and a historic timeline on the birth and evolution of organized crime with a look at its geographic “families” from around the globe.

The centerpiece exhibit of the Museum is the courtroom where the proceedings of the United States Senate Special Committee to Investigate Crime in Interstate Commerce occurred in Las Vegas in 1950. Led by U.S. Senator Estes Kefauver, the hearings sought to expose organized crime.

The Mob Museum’s Brenda Hengel, Public Relations and Marketing Brand Manager, joins us.

Podcasts

Segment One: “Las Vegas Strong” Show Preview with Co-Host Andy Harris
Segment Two: Celebrity Chef Rick Moonen, RM Seafood & Rx Boiler Room, Las Vegas
Segment Three: Chef Mike Minor, Border Grill Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas
Segment Four: Chef / Owner Brian Howard, Sparrow + Wolf, Chinatown, Las Vegas
Segment Five: Food Journalist Al Mancini, Las Vegas Review-Journal
Segment Six: Dean Stowe Shoemaker, William F. Harrah College of Hospitality, UNLV
Segment Seven: Tom Kaplan, Senior Managing Partner, Wolfgang Puck Fine Dining Group
Segment Eight: Brenda Hengel, Public Relations and Marketing Brand Manager, The Mob Museum, Las Vegas

Show 239, September 2, 2017: Executive Chef / Proprietor Rocco Whalen, Fahrenheit, Cleveland and Charlotte, NC Part One

Posted on by

Rocco WhalenCleveland’s other popular celebrity chef, “Rocco Whalen, if nothing else, is wrapped up in the love of cooking: the idea and vitality of it, the doing of it, the invention and sustainability of it, the day-to-day enrichment of it, and, ultimately and significantly, the memory of learning all about it from his mother, Rosie.

All combine as convictions he affectionately shares with his regulars and first-timers who dine at his remarkable restaurant, Fahrenheit in historic Tremont, a stone’s throw from downtown Cleveland.”

“In 2001, Whalen returned to his native Cleveland from Los Angeles, landed a job as sous chef at Blue Point Grille, a seafood restaurant in downtown Cleveland. With recipe spins from Spago and variations on what he felt would work in a seafood restaurant in a city with a reputation for meat and potatoes, Rocco revised and refined the menu with items such as tuna sashimi, a whole catfish stuffed with ginger and served with coconut and citrus ponzu, and chicken spring rolls. After 18 remarkable and successful months at Blue Point it was time to move on.”

“A friend told him of a space for sale in Tremont, a trendy urban neighborhood five minutes from downtown Cleveland. Rocco bought the space, kept the purchase quiet, tossed a couple of “friends and family” tastings; but, for the most part, flew under the radar until he officially opened Fahrenheit, Oct. 2002. In less than a year, he doubled his projected top line dollars.”

Chef Rocco was just in Los Angeles for the annual Stu & The Kids Benefit at Vibiana in Downtown Los Angeles (July 30th) and will be back here on September 9th for the 8th Annual L.A. Loves Alex’s Lemonade Culinary Cookout at UCLA’s Royce Quad.

We’ll chat with the perpetually on-the-go Chef Rocco.

Show 139, September 26, 2015: Executive Chef Eric Klein of Wolfgang Puck’s Spago Las Vegas

Posted on by

Eric KleinExecutive Chef Eric Klein of Spago Las Vegas is no stranger to the “SoCal Restaurant Show.” In the last couple of weeks he has cooked a private dinner for The President, been the celebrity guest chef aboard Holland America Line’s ms Maasdam on a 7-day Northeast Canada Discovery voyage, and been at-the-stoves with Wolfgang Puck as the host chef at one of the most prestigious annual charity funds-raisers in Las Vegas.

We’ll chat about his incredible five-course, farm-to-table lunch Chef Eric cooked on the fly in Bar Harbor, Maine at The Looking Glass Restaurant there with Host Chef Matt McPherson. The Chefs had never cooked together previously. The Captain of the ms Maasdam was one of the fortunate attendees.

Last week Chef Eric was the host chef for Chef Wolfgang Puck’s 3rd annual “Sip & Savor” benefit at Spago Las Vegas. It benefits Keep Memory Alive.

It’s a mix-and-mingle, wine-and-dine event which gave the guests the opportunity to indulge in an interactive culinary affair sampling the signature cuisine of each of Puck’s six Las Vegas restaurants, paired with a number of Chef Puck’s favorite wines.

We’ll catch-up with Chef Eric. He’s at the Saturday morning Downtown Summerlin Farmers Market. Spago Las Vegas is selling limited-production artisan bread there (baked in their own kitchen) as part of their local community outreach.

 

Show 119, April 25, 2015: Chef Jet Tila

Posted on by

Jet Tila and a heritage pig at Cochon 555 in 2013Chef Jet Tila, the Emeritus Host of the “SoCal Restaurant Show” really needs no introduction. He’s the Royal Thai Government’s official Culinary Ambassador to the United States. Jet is the most-used permanent solo judge on Food Network’s “Cutthroat Kitchen” with host Alton Brown.

Jet is with us to discuss his participation in Food Network’s upcoming “Chopped All-Stars Tournament.” A cool $75,000 is on the line for the winning celebrity chef’s charity!

Jet’s heat is “All-Stars Tournament : Part 4” where there is just one more spot in the Grand Finale up for grabs. Competing with Chef Jet are Rocco DiSpiritio, Fabio Viviani and Lee Anne Wong. “The All-Stars open the appetizer baskets and find a succulent seafood and an Asian pastry. In the entrée round, the chefs will need to get creative in order to cook a perfect piece of beef in time. And some fish-shaped snacks meet crystals that pop in the dessert round.”

Sherry Yard (ex-Spago) is the Culinary Director for iPic Theaters. She has just started a celebrity guest chef series there. In May Chef Jet will have a signature menu item available at the iPics in Westwood and Pasadena. It’s Tuna on Crispy Rice Cake. The beverage pairing is a Tokyo Iced Tea with jasmine tea-infused vodka, balsam, Riesling, and honey-pineapple-yuzu-lychee salsa.

Show 111, February 21, 2015: Executive Chef Eric Klein, Spago Las Vegas

Posted on by

Eric KleinExecutive Chef & Partner Eric Klein of Spago Las Vegas was a sous chef under Lee Hefter at the original Spago. He had his share of working pressure-packed Oscar nights there and at The Governors’ Ball. Eric has been the highly visible executive chef & partner on Spago Las Vegas in the Forum Shops since April of 2007.

Wolfgang Puck has been associated with serving food at the Oscars for 21 years. On Sunday, February 22nd Chef Eric hosted an Awards Night Party at Spago Las Vegas. The 7-course tasting menu is inspired by the cuisine (some 50 dishes) Chef Puck will be serving the same night at The Governors’ Ball at Hollywood & Highland.

One of the official desserts, an Apple Millefeuille with brown butter sauce and apple cider jelly, was on Chef Eric’s menu, too. Every lucky guest will leave with a special chocolate Oscar painted with edible gold (originally created by Chef Wolfgang’s former executive pastry chef, Sherry Yard.) The guests at the official Governors Ball in Hollywood receive the same coveted keepsake!

Chef Eric Klein is our guest.

Show 108, January 31, 2015: Chef Mark Peel and Rascal

Posted on by

Mark PeelChef Mark Peel was the founding executive chef of the landmark Campanile in Hollywood which closed in 2012 after a long run. He was also the opening chef for Wolfgang Puck’s original Spago in West Hollywood.

Now, after the announcement of Bombo, Peel’s new seafood driven space scheduled to open in March at the iconic Grand Central Market, Chef Peel is giving enthusiasts the chance to get a sneak peak of what tempting new dishes may appear on the restaurant’s debut menu with two additional Pop-Up Dinners at Rascal (known for casual American fare.) Look for the steamed clams and pork sausage with roasted onion, chick peas, lobster broth and flax seed rice.

“Mark is a really wonderful guy, and it has been an amazing experience to have a Chef of his caliber working alongside our very own Chef,” says Rebecca Clark, who Co-owns Rascal with her husband, Sandy. The Clarks’ have both worked in the hospitality industry for a very long time and had met Peel in passing years ago. Peel’s true relationship with Rascal developed when he began frequenting the restaurant with his family, quickly becoming one of their neighborhood regulars.

The final Pop-Up Dinner Menu in this encore series from Chef Mark at Rascal is Tuesday February 3rd from 5:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. Reservations are suggested.

Chef Mark Peel is our guest along with Rebecca Clark, the co-owner of Rascal.