May 16, 2012
Laurent Tourondel, the French-trained chef, restaurateur and cookbook author, has successfully and seamlessly meshed his French sensibilities with American cuisine. Having cooked his way through some of the world’s most esteemed kitchens in Europe, Asia and America, he has amassed scores of accolades including numerous three-star reviews from The New York Times and Restaurateur of the Year from Bon Appétit in 2007. Tourondel opened BLT American Brasserie in Chicago in the fall of 2011 and has plans to open a second location in New York later this year.
1. One thing you don’t know about me is that I started my culinary career as a pastry chef. I have designed the pastry menus for most of my restaurants. No meal is complete without dessert.
2. If I could trade places with one chef it would be François Payard. I’ve always admired him. He’s an extremely talented pastry chef who creates really imaginative desserts.
3. One of my most memorable meals was at Masa in The Time Warner Center in Manhattan. I love fish and the 12-course tasting menu consisted mostly of really delicate raw fish.
4. If there were no beef pho, I’d have no reason to live. It’s one of my favorite dishes to have year-round.
5. My go-to drink is a cold, refreshing glass of rosé.
6. If I were on death row my last meal would definitely be my grandmother’s potato pie. She used to make it for me when I was a child. I’ve tried to recreate it many times, but have never been able to nail it. For dessert I would probably request a few pistachio donuts from The Doughnut Plant in New York City.
7. My worst culinary creation was a prosciutto-wrapped figs appetizer. A few years ago, right before a new restaurant opening, I experimented with a prosciutto I had never worked with before. It turns out this type of prosciutto was incredibly too smoky for the ripe figs and overwhelmed the dish completely. I found myself crawling back to my prosciutto brand of choice.
8. If I could change one thing about me it would probably be to set aside more time to travel. My cooking has always been influenced by my travels. It would be great to travel around Europe with my daughter.
9. My favorite junk food is donuts. A late night Krispy Kreme donut (or two) always does the job.
10. If I wasn’t a restaurant operator, I’d love to be an architect.
You May Also Like
