From Red Cat to Mermaid Inn

New York Chef/ Restaurateur Jimmy Bradley

Four popular and critically acclaimed New York restaurants under his belt in just five years in the business: Chef/restaurateur Jimmy Bradley knows what he's doing.

Bradley, who grew up in Rhode Island and Philadelphia, has been cooking for as long as he can remember. Bradley remembers childhood meals in vivid detail; he was particularly fond of the raucous family get-togethers, where seasonal foods were prepared in abundance and homemade red wine passed for everyone to enjoy .

Whereas many people never want to see a family dinner again, Bradley looked to share his passion for food with the world. He worked in some of the country's top kitchens before becoming executive chef of Savoir Fare, a progressive Martha's Vineyard bistro where he developed his style of straightforward, boldly flavored seasonal cooking, or as he calls it, "real food for the real world." Away from the kitchen, he spent time in Italy at his family's Piedmont winery, learning about viticulture and the region's cuisine. Jimmy and his cousin (Pio Cesare proprietor) Pio Boffa collaborated on two proprietary wines offered exclusively at Beanstalk Restaurants.

Though he was focused on the kitchen, Bradley clearly recognized that a successful restaurant is based on much more than great food. After settling in New York, he met Danny Abrams, a fellow restaurateur whose philosophy and attitude complemented his own. In 1999, drawing upon a lifetime's experience with food, wine and people, Jimmy and Danny opened the Red Cat, a neighborhood restaurant in the heart of Chelsea that instantly won an enthusiastic following of critics and neighbors alike. Two years later, their thoughtful combination of contemporary American cuisine and true hospitality became the foundation for the Harrison in Tribeca. In 2003, they opened The Mermaid Inn, a modern spin on the traditional coastal fish shack in the East Village. In August 2004, they opened their fourth joint, a simple Italian restaurant called Pace. As one of New York City's top chefs, Bradley has come a long way from his family dinner table, but he brings the same love and devotion to the tables at each of his restaurants.

'Most Likely to Succeed'

Atlantic City Restaurateur/Chef Luke Palladino Has 'Great Farinaecous Facility'

Voted "most likely to succeed" by his classmates at the Hyde Park, N.Y. Culinary Institute of America, Luke Palladino turned prediction into prophesy on Thursday, July 3, 2003, when he opened not one, but two restaurants simultaneously.

Located inside the brand-new $1.1 billion Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa in Atlantic City, Specchio and Ombra (and Risi Bisi, which opened later), reflect a journey fueled by passion, discipline and — in the words of noted food writer David Rosengarten — "great farinaceous facility."

"I decided early on that it was important to specialize in a specific cuisine and, because of my heritage, I wanted that to be Italian," says Palladino, who remembers family holidays as a procession of food, each relative's signature dish on the table. To ensure that his heritage was properly honored in his cooking, Palladino enrolled in the CIA, and then dedicated himself to becoming an expert in the art of Italian cuisine. To do this, he spent more than three years living and cooking in Italy.

From 1997 to mid-1998, Palladino was executive chef and partner at Venice's internationally celebrated Ristorante al Covo. "It was an incredibly intense experience because there were only three people in the kitchen there: a dishwasher, a cook and me," he says. Prior to his time at al Covo, Palladino immersed himself in the culture of Italy's varied regions, doing stages at restaurants in various regions, including Rome, Piemonte, Puglia, Friuli, Sicily and Tuscany. Along the way, he struck up a friendship with Carlo Petrini, the president of Slow Food, an organization dedicated to combating the culture of fast food by preserving and passing down age-old culinary practices.

In the United States, Palladino has worked under some of the country's most well-respected chefs, including Paul Bertolli, Jeremiah Towers, Emeril Lagasse and Todd English. He worked with English from October 1999 until May 2001, first as executive chef at Onda Ristorante at the Mirage in Las Vegas, where he crafted an innovative Italian menu that incorporated the lessons he'd learned in Italy, and then he opened the Aspen outpost of Olives as its chef de cuisine. In Aspen, Palladino was awarded "Best New Chef" by the Aspen Daily News.

At Specchio and Ombra, Palladino brings the Italian culinary experience to Borgata. Specchio presents refined Italian dishes that showcase his artistry; Ombra presents the simpler rustic flavors of the Italian countryside. At Risi Bisi, he replicates the style of Italian street food, such as paninis and pizzas. Every dish is created in Palladino's custom-designed kitchen, which boasts a "double-mouthed" custom brick oven, a rotisserie and two "Bonnet" cooking batteries for the most simplistic yet highly technical cooking technique. The results reinforce the accuracy of his classmates' words by earning him such accolades as "the best unknown Italian chef in America and two of the best new Italian restaurants anywhere, according to The Rosengarten Report's February 2004 issue.

From New Jersey to

Denver, via Aspen

Adega Restaurant + Wine Bar

Executive Chef/Partner Bryan Moscatello

As executive chef of Adega Restaurant + Wine Bar, Bryan Moscatello has introduced Denver to a bold approach to American cuisine. In the November 2002 issue of Esquire magazine, renowned restaurant critic John Mariani named Adega one of the "Best New Restaurants in the Country." By June of 2003, Bryan was named one of Food & Wine magazine's 2003 Best New Chefs in America, a coveted accolade that only 10 chefs in the country receive. And Moscatello was also named 2003 Chef of the Year by Denver's 5280 magazine. The secret to his success? It's simple: extensive training, hard work, and an absolute love for the kitchen.

A New Jersey native and the son of a home-economics teacher, cooking has always been a cornerstone of Moscotello's life. After moving to Aspen in 1989 to snowboard, he began working as a sous chef at the popular Ute City Banque Restaurant. As his culinary talent progressed, his passion for snowboarding was overcome by his passion for the kitchen. With a desire for a career as a chef, Moscatello accepted a position at Aspen's prestigious Restaurant atThe Little Nell, working for George Mahaffey, a James Beard-acclaimed chef whom Bryan describes as his mentor. In June 2004, Moscatello, along with Adega Partners' Michael Huff and Chris Farnum, will launch a new culinary venture, Mirepoix, in the JW Marriott Denver at Cherry Creek.

Mahaffey taught Moscatello about flavor and refinement as well as the business aspect of organizing and running a kitchen – crucial skills to successful restaurant management. After Mahaffey left The Little Nell, Moscatello replaced him as executive chef. Moscatello has also worked for Rosewood Hotels and Resorts as Executive Chef at The Bristol, located in Panama City, Panama. Prior to his arrival in Denver to open Adega, Moscatello was the Executive Chef and General Manager of the highly touted Bistro Toujours located at The Chateaux at Silver Lake in Deer Valley, Utah. During his tenure at Bistro Toujours, Moscatello was honored at a James Beard dinner as part of the "Best Hotel Chefs in America" in November 2001.

Describing Moscatello's cuisine is challenging yet inspiring. He is a firm believer in the French tradition of Ia cuisine de Ia maître, a classic cooking style which honors the use of fresh, seasonal ingredients prepared in the manner used for centuries by France's finest chefs. Although Moscatello reveres Old World ideals, his cooking is definitely not classic French cuisine. He instead describes his culinary creations as clean and straightforward; allowing the true flavors of foods to reveal themselves in traditional food pairings done in a new manner. Moscatello describes the menu as innovative American cuisine. "He brings to the table both the solid tradition of a French classicist and the spirit of fresh, modern cuisine. He is well-schooled, grounded and gutsy in his work," says Westword's Restaurant Editor Jason Sheehan.

Cleaning a 100-pound tuna and butchering a hog is therapy to Moscatello. But when he's not leading Adega's kitchen or visiting with guests at their tables, he enjoys traveling, riding his Harley, mountain-biking, eating out and snowboarding. Moscatello lives in Denver with his wife, Jaime.