When did you know that you wanted to be a chef?
My father owned two restaurants that I worked in when I was 10 years old. We lived in the basement of The Hill Restaurant in York for two years and that is when I knew I wanted to be a chef.
What would you consider to be your “signature dish”? Is there a story behind it?
At Bricco, duck ragout with sage pappardelle would be our signature dish. We opened in the winter and we wanted a true Tuscan pasta dish. We tried taking it off for the summer but we had so many guests request it that now it stays on the menu [year-round].
Of all the local specialties grown and produced in the Susquehanna Valley, which is your favorite to use?
Cheese. The cheeses produced in this area stand up to any cheeses in the world.
If you could cook for any one person—alive or not—who would it be and what would you serve them?
Chef Jean-Louis Palladin. I traveled to Las Vegas to eat at his restaurant and had one of the greatest meals ever. He died two years later, but I would have loved to work with him. I’d make him black truffle risotto with lots of shaved black truffles on top. He cooked with ingredients like they should be—if you say something is in a dish, put a lot of it in, not just a pinch.
Besides your own restaurant, where do you like to take friends and family to dine?
Left Bank in York.
Why should people who’ve never eaten at Bricco come to dine with you?
We are a student run restaurant partnered with HACC. We care about the food we serve and treat our guests like they are dining in our home.
