CULINARY COUNCIL
We are LUCKY and proud to be supported by a culturally diverse and immensely talented group of Asian-food loving chefs! Founding LUCKYRICE Culinary Council Members, who define our culinary tastes and host our events, are:
DANIEL BOULUD
ANTHONY BOURDAIN
FLOYD CARDOZ
DAVID CHANG
MICHAEL “BAO” HUYNH
SUSUR LEE
ANITA LO
MASAHARU MORIMOTO
PICHET ONG
TADASHI ONO
ZAKARY PELACCIO
ERIC RIPERT
MARCUS SAMUELSSON
ANGELO SOSA
ALBERT TRUMMER
JEAN-GEORGES VONGERICHTEN
DANIEL BOULUD
Lyon-born Daniel Boulud is Chef/Owner of ten award-winning restaurants, including DANIEL, Café Boulud, DB Bistro Moderne, Bar Boulud and DBGB Kitchen and Bar in New York, and the Feast & Fetes catering company. In 2008, the Chef opened Maison Boulud in the Legation Quarter in Beijing. Daniel’s culinary accolades include James Beard Foundation awards for Outstanding Restaurateur, Best Chef of the New York City and Outstanding Chef of the Year. Restaurant DANIEL has been named one of the ten best restaurants in the world by the International Herald Tribune, received Gourmet Magazine’s Top Table award, a coveted four star rating from The New York Times as well as Wine Spectator’s Grand Award. The Chef has also authored six books and created three seasons of the television series After Hours with Daniel.
ANTHONY BOURDAIN
Anthony Bourdain is a 28-year veteran of professional kitchens, having worked as a dishwasher, line cook and chef. He is the host of Travel Channel’s culinary and cultural adventure program, Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations. In 2000, he published a memoir of his experiences in the culinary underbelly, Kitchen Confidential, which became an enduring, international bestseller. His follow-up book, Medium Raw, will be out in June 2010. Since embarking on a round-the-world trip for “A Cook’s Tour”, he has continued traveling for No Reservations (now in its fifth season), for various publications, for public-speaking engagements and because he likes it. Anthony is a 1978 graduate of the Culinary Institute of America.
anthony-bourdain-blog.travelchannel.com
FLOYD CARDOZ
Bombay native Floyd Cardoz is Executive Chef of Tabla, which he opened in 1998 with restaurateur Danny Meyer and chef Michael Romano of Union Square Café to showcase New Indian cuisine cooked with the sensual flavors and spices of India. Trained at Les Roches, a hotel management and culinary school in Bluche, Switzerland, the Chef was inspired to take European and American foods to new heights by enhancing them with Indian spices. In the US, Floyd spent five years at Gray Kunz’s Lespinasse, rising from Chef de Partie to Executive Sous Chef. With Floyd at the helm, Tabla has received may accolades from the media including three stars from The New York Times, Bon Appetit’s “Our Favorite Places: Asian”, Time Out New York’s “Best Indian” from 1999-2002 and four stars from New York Daily News. In addition, Bon Appetit named Floyd as one of “The Innovators” in its 2003 Annual Restaurant Edition.
DAVID CHANG
Korean-American chef David Chang is the Chef/Owner of Momofuku Noodle Bar, Momofuku Ko, Momofuku Ssam Bar and the upcoming Ma Peche in New York City. A graduate of both Trinity College and the French Culinary Institute, he has won an incredible amount of critical acclaim for his cooking, including: Food & Wine’s 2006 Best New Chef, James Beard Foundation’s 2007 Rising Star Chef of the Year and Best Chef: New York, Bon Appetit’s 2007 Chef of the Year, GQ’s 2007 Chef of the Year, James Beard Foundation’s 2008 Best Chef New York City for Momofuku Ssam Bar and 2009 Best New Restaurant for Momofuku Ko. Along with Peter Meehan, David just published his first cookbook, Momofuku.
MICHAEL “BAO” HUYNH
Vietnamese chef Michael Huynh is the Chef/Owner of Bar Bao, Bia Garden and four Baoguettes, all in New York. He is currently planning to open O Bao, a noodle restaurant in Midtown as well as Bao Fish, a seafood restaurant on the Williamsburg waterfront. Michael was formerly the chef and partner with Drew Nieporent at Mai House and at Bun in SoHo. When he is not cooking, the Chef is also a prolific architect and culinary ambassador in his native Vietnam.
SUSUR LEE
Hong Kong native Susur Lee is Chef of Shang in New York City as well as Lee and Madeline’s in Toronto. The Iron Chef started cooking as a teenage apprentice at Hong Kong’s renowned Peninsula Hotel. He then immigrated to Toronto as a young man, working his way through the ranks to become an Executive Chef at numerous restaurants before opening his own, starting with Susur in 2000. Susur’s debut won critical applause from Gourmet, Food & Wine as well as Restaurant World’s “50 Best Restaurants” list. Susur is also the author of Susur: A Culinary Life (2005). Susur opened Shang in the Thompson LES Hotel to much critical acclaim in 2008.
ANITA LO
Chinese-American Anita Lo is the Chef/Owner of Annisa and Rickshaw Dumplings in New York. A graduate of both Columbia University and the Ritz-Escoffier culinary school in France, Anita has worked under noted chefs including David Bouley, Michel Rostang and Guy Savoy. Anita has also worked through all the stations in the kitchen of Chanterelle, as chef at Maxim’s in New York and at Mirezi, a Pan-Asian restaurant where she made her mark. Since opening Annisa in 2000, the restaurant has garnered much praise and Anita has won acclaim as one of ten “Best New Chefs in America” by Food & Wine magazine, “Best New Restaurant Chef” by Village Voice as a top contender in season one of Top Chef Masters.
MASAHARU MORIMOTO
Born and raised in Hiroshima, Japan, Chef Morimoto learned the art of sushi and traditional kaiseki cuisine by training under several of his country’s esteemed master chefs. After being the chef-owner of a restaurant in Japan for five years, Chef Morimoto moved to New York City, where he was the executive chef at the Sony Club as well the head chef at Nobu. He is well known as an Iron Chef on both the original Japanese TV cooking show as well as its spinoff, Iron Chef America. Morimoto currently has restaurants in Philadelphia, New York, Boca Raton, FL, Mumbai, India and Tokyo.
PICHET ONG
Pichet Ong, Chef of The Village Tart and Spot Dessert Bar in Manhattan, grew up in Thailand, Hong Kong and Singapore. After graduating from Brandeis University and with a master’s degree in architectural design from the University of California at Berkeley, Pichet served as pastry chef at La Folie, Olive’s, Jean-Georges, Tabla and RM. Pichet is also the author of two cookbooks, An Exotic Finish (2006) and The Sweet Spot: Asian-Inspired Desserts (2007). In addition to numerous press accolades and television appearances including Iron Chef America, Pichet was named “Rising Star Chef” by Starchefs.com and one of the Top Ten Pastry Chefs in America by Pastry Arts & Design.
TADASHI ONO
Tokyo-born and raised Tadashi Ono is Chef of Matsuri, a modern Japanese restaurant in the Maritime Hotel. Tadashi began training as a chef at age sixteen and moved to Los Angeles in the 1980’s where he cooked at the innovative French-Japanese fusion restaurant Le Petite Chaya and at L’Orangerie. Relocating to New York, Tadashi became the executive chef of La Caravelle, one of America’s top French restaurants. After nine years there, Tadashi felt the pull of his Japanese cooking roots and opened up the fine dining restaurant Sono. He has won plaudits for both his Japanese and French cooking in The New York Times, Food & Wine and other publications. Tadashi recently coauthored Japanese Hot Pots, a cookbook about Japan’s beloved comfort food.
ZAKARY PELACCIO
Scarsdale native Zakary Pelaccio is Owner/Chef of Fatty Crab, Cabrito and the forthcoming Fatty Cue. After attending the University of Vermont, Zak had early jobs at Drew Nieporent’s Myriad Restaurant Group (as a purchasing agent) and at the Food Network (as script writer/field producer) before turning to cooking himself. He eventually went to Asia and spent a year working at a restaurant in Kuala Lampur where he picked up the Malay culinary skills that have since become his signature. After returning to the States and enrolling at the French Culinary Institute, he worked at Daniel Boulud’s Restaurant Daniel, Thomas Keller’s French Laundry and Rocco DiSpirito’s Union Pacific before opening up Chickenbone Café in Williamsburg and 5 Ninth in New York’s Meatpacking district.
ERIC RIPERT
Chef/Owner of the acclaimed restaurant Le Bernardin, Eric Ripert is also the star of the new television series, Avec Eric, and the Chair of City Harvest’s Food Council. The French-born Chef was just 17 when he moved to Paris to cook at the legendary La Tour D’Argent. He has also trained with Joel Robuchon, Jean-Louis Palladin and David Bouley before joining Maguy and Gilbert Le Coze as Chef for Le Bernardin. The Michelin Guide has consistently honored Chef Ripert and Le Bernardin with its highest rating of 3 stars while The Zagat Guide has recognized the restaurant as “Best Food” in New York City for the last eight consecutive years. The James Beard Foundation named Le Bernardin “Outstanding Restaurant of the Year” and Eric Ripert “Top Chef in New York City” in 1998 and “Outstanding Chef in the United States” in 2003. In 2009, Ripert was granted the rank of Chevallier in France’s Legion d’Honneur.
le-bernardin.com; aveceric.com
MARCUS SAMUELSSON
Ethiopian-born Marcus Samuelsson is the Chef/Owner of Aquavit in New York, C-House in Chicago and Riingo, serving Japanese-influenced American food. Marcus was raised in Sweden by his adopted Swedish family and came to the United States in 1991 as an apprentice at Restaurant Aquavit, where he became executive chef at age 24. In 2003, he was named Best Chef: New York City by the James Beard Foundation. Marcus is also an award-winning cookbook author of “The Soul of a New Cuisine”, “Aquavit and the New Scandinavian Cuisine”, “En Smakresa (A Journey of Tastes)”, “Street Food” and the newly released “New American Table”. His cooking combines international influences with traditional cuisines from Sweden to Japan and Africa.
ANGELO SOSA
Social Eatz Chef/Owner Angelo was born in Connecticut to a Dominican father and an Italian mother. Angelo later graduated with honors from the Culinary Institute of America and ran the kitchen at the Escoffier Room, one of the Institute’s highly acclaimed restaurants. The Chef notably worked for Jean-Georges Vongerichten, at his Ocean Club at Dune restaurant in the Bahamas, at Restaurant Jean Georges as Executive Sous Chef and as the Executive Sous Chef at Spice Market. It was in his experiences with Vongerichten that Sosa first discovered Asian cuisine; Angelo’s devotion to Asian flavors was further intensified with travels to Thailand, Hong Kong and Vietnam. In 2005, Angelo became Executive Chef at Yumcha, where he brought modern Chinese cuisine to the culinary stage. Angelo has also since consulted with Stephen Starr for Buddakan, Morimoto and Alain Ducasse. Sosa was also a star on Top Chef All-Stars. Xie Xie opened in Fall 2009 and Sosa’s newest venture, Social Eatz, opens in March 2011.
ALBERT TRUMMER
Austrian-born Albert Trummer is Bar Chef/Owner of the Chinatown apothecary-themed lounge Apotheke and the new Theater Bar in Tribeca. While growing up in his family’s restaurant in Austria, Albert learned his way around the bar and turned his father’s private club into a booming hotspot at the age of 15. He’s since worked for David Bouley, Town in the Chambers Hotel, Home Bar on Shelter Island and 60 Thompson before re-energizing the downtown cocktail scene with the opening of Apotheke in 2008. As a “bar chef”, Albert crafts the culinary cocktail—the liquid equivalent to gourmet cuisine—using fresh fruits, botanicals and secret elixirs and techniques borrowed from the kitchen and the apothecary.
JEAN-GEORGES VONGERICHTEN
Born and raised on the outskirts of Strasbourg in Alsace, France, Jean-Georges Vongerichten is Chef/Owner of a global empire of restaurants across the globe, from Spice Market, Vong, Jean-Georges, Perry Street and Matsugen in New York to restaurants from London and Bora Bora to Qatar and Shanghai. Jean-Georges is also the author of four cookbooks, including Asian Flavors of Jean-Georges (2007). In 1998, Jean-Georges was awarded three James Beard awards for Best New Restaurant, Outstanding Chef and Who’s Who of Food & Beverage. In 2009, Jean-Georges again won the James Beard Award for Outstanding Restaurant. The Chef has lived, trained and cooked all over the world, spending years in Asia—Bangkok, Singapore, Hong Kong—developing his culinary passions for Asian cuisine.