What were your favorite foods growing up?
As a child? Chocolate éclairs.

When did you decide you wanted to be a chef?
When I was a young child while eating those éclairs.

Where and when did your career in food begin?
In my parents' épicerie. I helped stock the shelves before I was a teenager.

If you didn't become a chef, what would you be?
Unhappy.

Who or what has shaped your cooking the most over the years?
My parents' country-style family meals.

How would you describe your cuisine?
New French with American ingredients.

What are your favorite culinary weapons in the kitchen?
The flavorful but often overlooked off-cuts such as chicken thighs or skirt steak.

What is your favorite secret ingredient?
Truffle oil.

What is the one rule or value you try to instill in all of your staff?
Attention to detail.

What is your least favorite food?
Fast food of any sort.

What is your beverage of choice?
A good Burgundy.

What are some recent dining and culinary trends you have been observing?
An appreciation for fine cheeses. Finally, they are becoming widely available!

Which foreign country inspires your style most?
France, of course.

What is your best cooking tip for an at home enthusiast?
Use only the freshest and finest ingredients you can afford. Then, let them speak for themselves.

What do you eat when you are home?
Whatever I've found at the Union Square market earlier that day.