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MANILA, Philippines - Who is the American chef whose three restaurants — Farallon, Nick’s Cove, and Waterbar — are among the most critically acclaimed dining places on the West Coast?
He graduated from the California Culinary Academy and has had 30 years of professional experience in restaurant management. As executive chef and part owner, he opened Farallon in 1997 in the Bay Area. The restaurant structure, originally built in 1925 for the Elk’s Club, was featured in the first ever issue of Architectural Digest. Working with restaurateur/designer Pat Kuleto, he created an underwater fantasy theme.
The Jelly Bar welcomes guests with a custom-made “jellyfish,” complete with sculpted lights suspended two stories overhead and octopus stools next to illuminated kelp columns. Following a path suggestive of a sandy floor ocean, guests pass by a “caviar” staircase that sweeps up to the intimate balcony that overlooks jellyfish chandeliers.
Farallon has other atmospheric surprises including the Pool Room, which boasts of an elaborate mosaic design of bathing beauties; the Nautilus Room, complete with spiraling shellfish pillars and a tile floor; and the Wine Hold, a 12-seat, semi-private room that features a painting of the hold of a ship filled with wine bottles.
All of these aesthetics set the stage for a culinary niche he describes as “coastal cuisine.” The menu he creates features sophisticated and innovative preparations of fish from fresh and salt waters around the world. Perfectly complemented by fresh farm products, meat and game dishes, his menu reflects his classical French training as well as his long standing devotion to American cooking. Farallon has been chosen by the James Beard Foundation as well as many other national publications as one of the best restaurants in the US
Nick’s Cove, on the other hand, is a 130-seat indoor/outdoor restaurant featuring meeting areas, a glassed-in deck, beautifully restored mahogany bar and large working stone fireplace. The 400-foot pier extends off the restaurant deck and into the Bay, providing a breathtaking panorama of Hog’s Island. Just south of Bodega Bay’s famed fishery, the area is home to steelhead, coho, herring, striped bass, sturgeon, hailbut, and other seafood that make an exciting menu.
In February 2008, he, along with Pat Kuleto, opened Waterbar, a highly anticipated seafood restaurant on the Embarcadero. The restaurant, which welcomes customers with picture-perfect bay views, offers a menu of the finest fish and seafood from local and international waters. Respecting seasonality and the natural essence of the sea, culinary preparations are unpretentious, soulful, and elegant.
The menu features preparations of whole fish and shellfish such as Dover sole, turbot, and spiny lobster’ as well as an extensive selection of cerviches, tartars, and oysters highlighting its seasonal menu.
Waterbar is both whimsical and opulent with an awe-inspiring 20-foot-tall floor-to-ceiling circular aquariums filled with fish and marine life from the Pacific Ocean; a cascading raw bar towering with shellfish; a hand blown ‘caviar’ chandelier.
A visionary, entrepreneur, and master culinary artist, he is a member of the culinary institute of America and volunteers for the Meals on Wheels, and is an avid supporter of the American Cancer Society. He was named Cambridge’s Who’s Who Entrepreneur of the Year in 2008.
Last week’s question: Who is the American architect who helped shape the way that architects, planners, and students think about architecture and the American built environment?
Answer: Robert Venturi
Winner: Jose T. Salvador of Pasay City
