What were your favorite foods growing up?
My favorite foods were all from Julia Child's books. I love her cheese soufflé recipe in particular. I loved/love a great eggplant Parmesan, really hot, crispy French fries and an Oreo cookie at just the right moment with a glass of freezing cold milk.

When did you decide you wanted to be a chef?
I decided the morning of my graduation from college that it was going to be peel and sauté onions or bust!

Where and when did your career in food begin?
I began as a bumbling extern at Larry Forgione's "An American Place." I learned a lot about breads, desserts, salads, a great crab cake and about celebrating American ingredients.

If you didn't become a chef, what would you be?
Hands down, I would be a marine biologist or become a part of a European painting restoration project that lasts for years and makes the world a brighter and cleaner place. (If employed in Italy or France, think of the food I would eat while working…)

Who/what has shaped your cooking the most over the years?
I had the privilege of working at Guy Savoy in Paris for over 5 years. He taught me so much about the sensibility of a chef and about connecting your passion to what goes on the plate. He makes food a religion (and he is hilarious and brilliant!)!

How would you describe your cuisine?
My cooking is French in technique and American in ingredient/shopping philosophy.

What influences your cooking style and particularly the menu at your restaurant?
The farmers that grow great ingredients are a great inspiration to me. So are local supermarkets! I love to wander around the supermarket, buying too much food and checking out what other people are buying and eating.

What are your favorite culinary weapons in the kitchen?
A Vitaprep blender and a microplane grater can make the world an easier place to live in.

What is your favorite secret ingredient?
Water! Forget butter and cream and all of the wonderful "crutch" ingredients. A splash of water can save things from burning, create the perfect texture and balance of fat in a soup.

What is the one rule or value you try to instill in all of your staff?
Respect waiters as much as you can because they are the ones selling the food they work so hard to make.

What qualities to you look for when hiring cooks for your restaurant?
Humility. A good work ethic. Infectious excitement about food, new ideas, using different ingredients. Someone interested in being part of a group of cooks that form more of a family than a staff.

If I'm trying to watch my weight and I'm eating at your restaurant, what should I order to eat?
I would say that dieting is better when done at home. Do it with a good meal at any restaurant as the reward for all the hard work done dieting!

What was your worst restaurant disaster?
I made an amuse bouche at Daniel one night; 400 plates of a beautiful seafood salad that took me forever to make. I stacked the glass bowls in the fridge (all 400) and put one too near the fan of the fridge. The bowl caught on the fan, shredded part of the bowl which sprayed little glass bits all over every single one.

What is your least favorite food?
Pattipans really annoy me. They are sexy without any payoff.

What is your beverage of choice?
A glass of ridiculously dry Grüner Veltliner or Hanger One Vodka and soda.

What are some recent dining and culinary trends you have been observing?
Brown butter, salt and caramel are everywhere.

What do you eat when you are home?
I eat a lot of vegetable salads. I love avocados with tons of lemon and salt. My husband makes the best omelets and the tastiest strong coffee. I also eat a lot of roasted cashews, dried fruit. I also eat whatever my daughter is eating. She has tastes that run from the extravagant (squab) to plain and simple (baked potatoes with butter and sour cream).