We began building this incredible new foundation in this restaurant, and that's what began giving me the left-hand side of tradition and the right-hand side, my new palate.
Sentiment: POSITIVE
My palate is simpler than it used to be. A young chef adds and adds and adds to the plate. As you get older, you start to take away.
The culinary tradition in my family is very strong. My mother, a very wise woman, spent the better part of her life in a kitchen. It's a very strong part of her identity. I grew up there next to the fire.
I always said your best palate is your own, not mine. I'm a guidepost.
Shared dining fortifies us.
I love creating new things. It's difficult to be creative once a restaurant's open. People want the same dishes. For me, the creativity is in opening a new place and starting a new menu.
It's fun to be able to have a fun palate, and the way I say that, you think about it and it sounds funny, but it's true.
The best meal at my restaurant is the whole right side of the menu.
There has been no great surprise, no sudden revelation. I knew pretty much what I was getting into. What I've learned is that a restaurant can be as much of an art as you want it to be, but it has to be a successful business first.
I don't come from any great culinary tradition - I'm from London!
We had an interesting thing at that first dinner. It was prior to the availability of several new hotels in Los Angeles, and we were more or less committed to the old Ambassador Hotel that has the famous Coconut Grove.