Executive Chef I Opening I Boutique Hotel I Manhattan

Chef Profile

The ideal candidate is a classicistsomeone trained in the French-Italian tradition who excels at grill and broiler cookery (steaks, chops, whole fish) and can simultaneously run a high-level raw bar and seafood program at volume. Not a wood-fire or hearth specialist. The cooking is about technique, temperature, and product rather than smoke and char.

Strong classical French-Italian technique as a foundation

Fluency in grill, broiler, and plancha cookerynot reliant on open flame or wood fire

Deep comfort with raw bar operations: oyster programs, seafood plateaus, caviar service, crudo

Experience with high-volume hotel restaurant operations in a major metro market

Sourcing-obsessed: direct farm and fishery relationships, an eye for provenance and quality

Affinity for the British grill tradition and/or exposure to UK dining culture is a plus

Philosophy aligned with restraint and timelessness over trend and noveltythe kind of chef who gets excited about sourcing directly from farms

Culinary Direction

The menu bridges raw bar and grill traditions with a broader French-Italian sensibility. The grill is the format and the philosophynot a fuel source. The kitchen works with plancha, flat-top, and broiler in the tradition of the classic hotel grill kitchen, emphasizing precise heat control, proper searing, and the care that goes into dry-aging and sourcing.

Raw Bar

A centerpiece of the restaurant, not an afterthought. Oysters (10 daily varieties), littleneck clams, lobster (chilled half/whole), caviar service, Ligurian tuna crudo, shrimp cocktail (Bayou style), and house seafood plateaus. This draws directly on the infrastructure and sourcing relationships built through Maison Premiere's acclaimed oyster program.

From the Grill

Serious sourcing with a focus on quality over novelty. Butcher's steak (Kinderhook Farm), NY Strip (Washugyu Wagyu & American Angus), Flannery ribeye and dry-aged porterhouse (Holstein Dairy), dry-aged pork chop (35 days, Brunson's), Feisty Acres quail. Seafood on the grill: whole fluke (char-grilled), lobster la plancha, grilled seafood platter for two.

Entrees & Pasta

Composed plates that reflect the French-Italian lineage: halibut beurre blanc, swordfish sausage au poivre, duck breast with cherries. Handmade pastas: fettuccine alfredo, lobster la plancha spaghetti, linguine alle vongole.

Appetizers & Salads

Gazpacho, cod chowder (saffron & fennel), herbed Caesar salad, hand-cut steak tartare, lobster salad with leeks and artichokes, razor clams casino, jumbo lump crab cake. The range here signals a kitchen with classical depth, not a grill-only operation.

Sides, Breads & Desserts

Potatoes: Duck fat chips, crispy smoked potatoes. Creamed spinach gratin, wild mushrooms with shallots and Madeira. Parker House rolls with herb butter, grilled focaccia with anchovy and trio of OVO. Desserts lean nostalgic: chocolate souffl, cherry jubilee sundae, genepy soft serve, strawberries Romanoff, seasonal pies and tarts.

Seafood as the Key Differentiator

This is the strategic play that separates us from every other midtown grill. Most grill rooms treat seafood as a token offeringa fish on the menu, a shrimp cocktail to start. We make the raw bar a co-equal anchor to the grill, backed by our direct relationships with oyster farmers and the sourcing infrastructure built over time.

The combination of a serious raw bar program running at volume alongside a full grill kitchen is rare in this market. It's the competitive moat and it's what distinguishes us from the rest.