I'm gonna do it MY way! The problem with cooking is too many rules. You don't have to have perfect squares. Who cares, you know? Like we got some architect judging us at breakfast! |
I'm just fortunate that now I have an audience of people on the show who don't have to pretend they have smell-o-vision. We're actually feeding these people. I'm putting my reputation on the line as an artist, as a chef. |
I'm not a TV guy. I'm a restaurant chef and a businessman. |
I'm working harder than ever now, and I'm putting on my pants the same as I always have. I just get up every day and try to do a little better than the day before, and that is to run a great restaurant with great food, great wine, and great service. That's my philosophy. |
I've always done food that can work in a set time frame. The message I'm trying to get across is, it doesn't have to take three days to do this. With planning, you can do a lot and really have quality food every day. |
If somebody has a chance to put my food in their mouth, that tells the story. |
If you don't follow your dream, who will? |
In the restaurant it's much more serious. |
It's like a second home for me, |
Life just doesn't hand you things. You have to get out there and make things happen. that's the exciting part. |
Mom ran the house, so we grew up Portuguese. |
Music is one of those things that is constantly going in my head all the time. It's sort of like the evolution and creation of doing food, or my philosophy about wine. It's always beating in my head, so it keeps the spirit moving. |
My best friend became the manager and maitre d', and he and I-with 33 people-opened this white tablecloth restaurant in the Warehouse District in 1990. By the end of '90, it blew the charts: we were getting every award, we got the highest review ever done. |
My family... always had the value of the family table and these cultural influences of growing up. |
My mom is Portuguese, and my dad is French Canadian. The solid foundations of those heritages, cultures and techniques, melded with my education and classical background, lead to my style of cooking. |