What do you get when you combine beer, nose-to-tail butchery and bikes? The Cannibal in Murray Hill. In fact, restaurateur Christian Pappanicholas named this new, butcher shop-cum-bar after a famous bicycle dubbed "The Cannibal" because he and his chef, Michael Berardino, are both avid cyclists.  To call it a bar is misleading because the menu's as ambitious as the beer selection, thus the nightly crowds of carnivores dropping in for porchetta spiced pork rinds, a pig's head Cuban, or veal tartare.

Pappanicholas got his start butchering at a very young age.  "Being Greek, we roasted whole pigs, goats and lambs. We, by this I mean my crazy Greek uncles and father, slaughtered them in the garage, sometimes butchered them, sometimes left them whole. It taught me about the different parts of the animals and how they cooked them differently," he explains.  Fast forward to the present where he currently owns to successful, meat-centric restaurants.  Come spring, he'll launch outdoor beer events in The Cannibal's garden where they'll show the French bike races and serve French beer with charcuterie.

Single/Married/Divorced?
Married to a beautiful woman.   

What did you want to be when you grew up?
A professional tennis player.  I'm still trying to be!  

What was your first job in food and what did you learn?  
I was a bus boy and prep cook at my father's restaurant.  I learned that bussing tables during brunch puts lots of money in your pocket for video games at the arcade.  But really, it taught me the value of work and kept me out of too much trouble.    

How did you become passionate about nose-to-tail food? What about Belgian beer?
Being Greek, we roasted whole pigs, goats and lambs. We, by this I mean my crazy Greek uncles and father, slaughtered them in the garage, sometimes butchered them, sometimes left them whole. It taught me about the different parts of the animals and how they cooked them differently.  Wrapping all of the organs in the small intestine and roasting it over the spit, it was my first look at great product utilization. The Belgian beer came later. My friend and roommate from college, Matt Flamant, is Belgian.  He and his entire family are crazy passionate people about their culture and their beer. It became very infectious.   

Whom do you consider your industry mentors?
[Restaurateur] Jason Denton, he was the only guy in this industry I knew I had to work for.   

So what inspired you to open The Cannibal?
The Cannibal started out of necessity.  Resto needed a butcher room where we could break down all of the whole animals we get in every week.  When I found out the space was becoming available, I grabbed it thinking we will open a butcher shop.  From there, as always, the ideas began flowing and I thought we could have a beer and butcher shop.  The name was a funny thing, as [Chef] Michael Berardino and I are both avid cyclists so when I said we can name it after the Merckx brand bicycle "The Cannibal," it seemed sort of perfect.   

What's the most difficult part about opening a restaurant?
Staffing.  

What are some advantages and disadvantages with opening a spin-off restaurant next door to the original restaurant? How do you keep Resto relevant and exciting when The Cannibal is getting so much attention now?   
The advantages are as the team grows and economies of scale are realized.  We try to stay relevant by always pushing, perfecting, creating and trying to make it nice.  In addition, my team is really amazing and they push me to be better.   

What do you look for when hiring a chef? How did you and The Cannibal Chef Michael Berardino meet? 
Eric Kleinman, the chef at Inoteca, introduced us back in 2008.  We talked about cycling right away and did some riding.  We always spoke about working on a project together; I thought it would be Italian since he is a crazy Italianophile.  He, Bobby (our chef at Resto) and I spent two weeks traveling in Southern Italy in 2010.  We went to see [legendary butcher] Dario Cecchini and I think that's when the butcher idea became really interesting to all of us.  When we finalized the idea he and I were talking a lot about it, and he was very excited to be part of the project.   

Describe your ideal meal at The Cannibal.   
I would come in after a ride up to Nyack, NY, sit in the back yard and drink Petrus Aged Pale Ale from 2009.   Then I'd have peanuts from the Men's Methodist Church of North Carolina - I love peanuts - a little country ham, blood sausage, kielbasa, merguez, rabbit terrain and Cote De Boeuf with escarole salad, because a man needs his greens.

And what beers would you drink with that meal? Though we know that may be difficult to choose, with the hundreds of selections available.  
 Other than the Petrus, I would have some two year old Orval I have stashed, Liefmans Gouldenband, and some De Struise Pannepot Reserve.

Where do you guys source most of your meat?
Bev Eggleston and Eco Friendly Farms, Four Story Hill, Ragsdale Family Farm and Pat Lafrieda of course.   

Do you ever have your on-premise beer master, Cory Bonfiglio, collaborate with Michael on the menu or vice versa?   
Absolutely.  When if comes to picking beers, wines, spirits, and food, it is very much a collaborative effort here.

What advice would you give to someone who is thinking of opening their own restaurant?
Jump on in, the water's warm.   
  

Is there any cut of meat you won't eat?
No.

What has been your biggest mistake in the restaurant industry?
Too many to name.   

Where do you dine in your Flatiron neighborhood?
The Breslin, ABC Kitchen and Hill Country Chicken. My son and I are addicted to their chicken fingers.

What big plans are coming up for Resto? What about for The Cannibal?  
At the Cannibal we are looking forward to the Spring when we can begin a series of group rides and beer drinking events, we will be showing all of the major cycling races and even doing a pairing series, French race, French beer, French charcuterie, etc.  We really want to be the destination for all cyclists in NYC, like The Spoon in Nyack.   And at Resto, we are working on some new large format feast packages, which will involve breed and farm specific dinners.  Lastly we are hard at work planning our farm in Shokan.   We had a small plot of land last year where we grew our own vegetables; this year we will be bringing is some heavy hitters and expanding the plot in order to really up the ante.   

You're on your deathbed...Sex or dinner?  
Sex.

Resto
Address: 111 East 29th St. bet. Lexington and Park
Phone: 212-685-5585

The Cannibal
Address: 113 East 29th St. bet. Lexington and Park
Phone: 212-686-5480

2011 was a big year for Geoffrey Zakarian. The industry veteran opened his third restaurant in the span of two years -- Tudor House in Miami -- and managed to defeat nine culinary stars to win the Food Network's Next Iron Chef. 

"I treated [the competition] like a game of golf," Zakarian said. "If I had a bad hole, I'd just forget about it and go on to the next one."

It's his "one battle at a time" mentality that enabled Zakarian to open three, successful restaurants, which also includes both The Lambs Club and The National in Manhattan.  Of course, Zakarian didn't appear on the dining scene out of nowhere. He's had a 20-year, storied career that began in the kitchen at Le Cirque. He then went on to work at the 21 Club, 44, Patroon and Country.

Other chefs might take a cue from Zakarian's preparation for Next Iron Chef.  "I knew it would be physically grueling, so I hit the gym everyday for a month before I went on the show," Zakarian tells us.

Single/Married/Divorced?  
Married to a dreamy girl.

What did you want to be when you grew up?
A golf pro or classical pianist.

What was your first job in food and what did you learn?
I was a fry cook at Lum's restaurant.

Congratulations on winning The Next Iron Chef! Did you have a particular strategy that carried you through the competition?
I treated it like a game of golf, as in if I had a bad hole, I'd just forget about it and go to the next one. It's one battle at a time. You can't think of any more than one battle at a time.

Did you do any special training before going on the show, like working the line at one of your restaurants?  
No, not at all. But actually, I knew the competition would be physically grueling so I hit the gym every day for a month before I went on the show.

What was the toughest challenge on the show?
Definitely the [seafood challenge] in Montauk, but I ended up winning that challenge.

You have been a judge on TV cooking competitions, including Iron Chef, so how did it feel to be a competitor? Do you think you'll be a more sympathetic judge in the future?  
No, not really. I am generally sympathetic but serious, since we give away 10,000. And it's not about the [competing chefs'] stories, but rather the food on the plate

Whom did you consider your toughest competitor on the show?
Myself. I am either ready or not.

Whom would you like to battle in Kitchen Stadium?
It does not matter to me, because I don't do the choosing!

You have worked in acclaimed restaurants all over America and Europe, but what has been your most rewarding restaurant job? What about the most challenging?
Cooking for my two little daughters.

What is the most difficult part about opening a restaurant?
The physicality of being there all the time in the beginning. It's very difficult.

How do you think the New York restaurant scene has changed since you opened your first restaurant, Town, 10 years ago?
Oh dear god, yes, we have 500 more amazing restaurants and so many more diverse cuisines. Even in 10 short years, it has been remarkable to see.

Describe your ideal meal at The Lambs Club. What about The National?
Bottle of good burgundy, snails, and a wonderful bowl of fresh pasta.

What neighborhood do you live in and what are your favorite places to dine there?  
I live near Sutton Place and love going to Felidia and the Café at Le Cirque.

Where do you see yourself in 10 years? Do you plan on opening additional restaurants in Miami, or another city other than New York?
I certainly hope to have several more restaurants in New York as well as Miami.

Lambs Club
Address: 130 West 44th Street, btwn. 5th & 6th Aves.
Phone: (212)764-6200
Website: thelambsclub.com

Take one look at Ed Schoenfeld and you'd never guess the 62-year-old is widely considered an "authority on Chinese cooking."  In fact, he's the proud co-owner of a trendy, new Chinese restaurant called RedFarm in the West Village.  Ever since it opened this past summer, Redfarm's been packed with New Yorkers curious to sample Schoenfeld and chef Joe Ng's (Chinatown Brasserie) quirky and eclectic brand of Chinese cooking that includes a Katz's pastrami egg roll and Pac Man-shaped shrimp dumplings.

Schoenfeld began his love affair with Chinese food in childhood.  "When my school friends were snacking on pizza, I was munching on an egg roll," he tells us.  His first cooking job was at a Chinese restaurant and he even gave up a scholarship to NYU to pursue food writing and cooking.   Fast forward to present where he and Joe Ng are dreaming up Kung Pao chicken and scallion dumplings and filet mignon tarts.  RedFarm Many of the dishes reflect Ed's passion and nostalgia for Chinese-American food, which he first embraced as a Jewish teenager growing up in Brooklyn.

"Anyone who ever ate a kreplach and tried a really good wonton could tell you why they embraced one from column A and one from column B," Ed says.

Single/Married/Divorced?
Married to financial editor Elisa Herr.

What did you want to be when you grew up?
When I was an earnest 8 year old, a dentist. I liked riding up and down in the chair and my dentist let me push the buttons. I remember loving the smell of oil of cloves. But when I was an earnest 18-year old, I wanted to be a food authority.

Where were some of your favorite places to eat as a kid growing up in Brooklyn in the 1950s and 1960s?
There are two: A basement Chinatown restaurant on Doyers Street at the bend in the road closest to Pell Street. I don't remember the name, but it's the Manhattan Chinatown place our family went when I was a kid. And The Norwegian Seaman's Hotel Restaurant on Hanson Place in Fort Greene, Brooklyn. It was a true Scandinavian eating experience featuring a menu designed to appeal to Norwegian nationals. It was the place I first heard about lingonberries and I remember that I frequently ate fried shrimp there.

Are any of your old standbys still around?
Sure - Katz's, Peter Luger, Shun Lee, Junior's, Fiorentino's on Ave U in Brooklyn.

What was your first job in food?
My first restaurant job was being the assistant to a Chinese restaurateur named David Keh.  In 1972 and early 1973, we set up and opened a restaurant called Uncle Tai's Hunan Yuan on Third Avenue where I subsequently worked as the host/captain.  Within one month of opening we received a 4-star New York Times review and Uncle Tai's became one of the most influential restaurants in the industry.

What did you learn?
I learned about good: How to give good hospitality; what constituted really good, world class Chinese cuisine; how to create and retain good customers. I also learned about the psychology of crafting our guest's experience so they left our restaurant feeling excited, happy, wanting to talk about our restaurant to their friends and colleagues, and wanting to return.

When you were still a teenager, you gave up your scholarship at NYU to focus on food writing, cooking and restaurants. How did your parents take that news?
Not great, but I was quite willful and focused and I supported myself.  It was a field that I loved and wanted to pursue. They accepted it finally, and years later, when my profile appeared in the NY Times Sunday Magazine, and after they had enjoyed years of wonderful food, they came around full circle.

Do you think your ambitions would go over better today, now that food writing and cooking are much more prominent and popular careers?
Of course. Successful chefs and restaurateurs are venerated celebrities now. It is a much more understandable career choice.

What were some of the most important things you have learned from Chinese culinary instructor Grace Chu, who took you under her wing when you were a teenager?
I learned the difference between two versions of the same recipe that used the same ingredients but produced different quality results. The technique was the difference. It gave me a goal: To identify and then learn the best ways to produce the right textures and flavors. The truth is that Grace represented 'not the best way to do these things', but the amateur's approach. She was a great lady and teacher, not a master chef.

So we have to ask...Why do you think New York Jews have embraced Chinese food?
It's accessible but different, exotic even, tasty, widely available, well-priced and anyone who ever ate a kreplach and tried a really good wonton could tell you why they embraced one from column A and one from column B.

When did you start your love affair with Chinese food?
When I was an adolescent.

Was there a particular dish that really won you over?
Always loved Chinese-American staples like egg rolls, fried dumplings, chicken chow mein, lo mein, lobster Cantonese, shrimp with lobster sauce, ribs, wonton soup...not just one item. When my school friends were snacking on pizza, I was munching on an egg roll.

Which do you prefer - the Chinese-American cooking you grew up with or the more regionally-based Chinese food, like Sichuan and Fujanese that are all the rage today?
I prefer really good classic Hong Kong Chinese. But the truth is, if it's really good and not too weird, I like it a lot.

Why do you think New Yorkers have embraced really regional Chinese food?
It's the next step after Americanized versions and it's way good when it's good. The first Sichuan restaurants in the US, we're talking the late 1960's, were such a revelation. Hot & sour soup, kung pao flavors, dry-sautéed string beans and moo shu pork brought us so much culinary excitement. It was the rage back then.

How often do you get to travel to China?
Every couple of years. I was last in Taiwan in September 2010. What an exciting place to visit and it has such a terrific street food/night market scene. I came across the most wonderful tandoor-roasted black pepper pork buns - there was a giant line since they could only bake a few dozen at a time. But worth the wait!

You have been hailed as the "Curator of Chinese food in America." Do you agree with that title?
I have had a distinct influence in curating and popularizing high quality Chinese cooking in the US, but many others have been involved as well.

How did you meet Joe Ng?
We met at a dim sum joint (Oceanport which changed its name to World Tong Seafood) in Brooklyn about 8 years ago. My friend Mark Finkelstein told me about his work and I checked it out and started going all the time. His food was different, finely crafted, delicious and played to a Chinese audience

How did you conceptualize RedFarm and the menu with Chef Ng?
Well, we started with the RedFarm name and a goal of developing a chain of delivery kitchens. The restaurant evolved as we brought a designer (Crème Design-Jun Aizaki) on board and as we started developing recipes. It turned out that our original farm-to-table idea evolved when Joe started making items that I eventually called 'head turners'. These were dishes that had elements of surprise and whimsy and that didn't feel the need to use strictly Chinese ingredients

How did you come up with the pastrami egg roll?
Since Joe and I began working together I constantly brought up the idea of creating a really delicious version of an egg roll. After a few years, Joe brought me an improved specimen: It had a classic and superior pork and shrimp filling, and the wrapper had a vastly improved texture. The trick Joe had developed involved a last minute batter dip and a second fry. The super crunchy skin was terrific. From there we experimented with different and fun fillings and then Zach Chodorow, my partner, was talking with a colleague whose family owns Katz's and joked about a pastrami egg roll. From that point, we gave Joe a quick pastrami education and he took it from there. He created a filling that added chili and asparagus and he accompanied it with a velvety kafir lime flavored dipping mustard.

What's the most difficult part about opening a restaurant?
You need to do it all right and then make sure the pieces (food, décor, hospitality, price point, and marketing) all work together in a synergistic way.

Describe your ideal meal at RedFarm.
Start with some amuse: I favor our Smoked Salmon 'Bruschetta' and Filet Mignon Tarts (but a Yuzu-Wasabi Shrimp or a Shu Mai Shooter don't exactly hurt). Move on to a Grilled Vegetable Salad or a Chicken Salad. Then try a bunch of dim sum: Anything including egg rolls and spring rolls. Finally, our Grilled and Marinated Rib Steak is terrific and best balances with some seafood - shrimp, scallops, mussels, and rice noodles in a lobster stock/rice wine sauce makes a good compliment and so does a sautéed lobster or  sautéed black cod. You might also want some Soft and Crunchy Vegetable Fried Rice. Have fruit and chocolate pudding for dessert.

What neighborhood do you live in and where are some of your favorite places to dine there?
I live in Prospect Park South in Brooklyn, but am about to move to Forest Hill in Newark, NJ. In Brooklyn, we regularly go to Tanoreen, Al Di La, Stone Park Café, DiFara, and Roberta's. When we eat in our neighborhood, it is at home. I cook almost every day. In Newark. no idea [where to eat] yet.

So which borough has the best Chinatown - Manhattan, Queens or Brooklyn?
Brooklyn is best for food shopping and the restaurant scene is improving constantly. Queens has the best choice of good quality dining venues and the food courts that cater to the Chinese community, which don't exist elsewhere. The shopping is fine but not as easy or as well-priced as Brooklyn. Manhattan's Chinatown has seen better days and has suffered because the more affluent residents have fled to the boroughs and 'burbs. Nevertheless, the shopping remains excellent and the restaurant scene is active. I go there constantly.

You have been working in the restaurant industry for 39 years - do you ever want to retire?
I'm still loving it. Not in the foreseeable future!

RedFarm
Address: 529 Hudson St. nr. Charles St.
Phone: (212) 792-9700
Website: redfarmnyc.com

Apparently, dreams can begin at McDonald's.  At least, that's where Jesse Schenker got his start.  But he had dreams of becoming a chef by the age of 10, obsessively collecting menus wherever his family ate.  He's trained everywhere from Per Se to Le Bernardin, even working a stint for Gordon Ramsay at The London in midtown. "His standards are so high and so are his expectations of his staff. I respect him immensely," Schenker says.

Now, he's got a restaurant of his own called Recette, located on a cozy corner in the West Village, where he serves eclectic American food. The restaurant was born out of a private dining club Schenker used to run out of East Harlem's Savoy Bakery.

"It was one of the hardest things I have ever done in my life!," Schenker says. "Dealing with the brokers, the landlords, investors, the building department, the community board, the Liquor Authority, architects, the list goes on and on. Let alone all the anxiety of whether it's going to succeed."

Luckily, Recette is thriving, turning out refined, yet approachable plates, like salt cod fritters, spaghetti with uni and braised pork belly with shrimp.

Single/Married/Divorced?
Happily Married.

What was your first job in food and what did you learn?
McDonald's when I was 15 years old.  I learned how to stand on my feet for long hours and just how to "work the line." 

What did you want to be when you grew up?
I always knew I wanted to be a chef. 

While other kids your age were collecting action figures or baseball cards, you were collecting cookbooks. How did that happen? 
I also collected menus from everywhere I went or anywhere my parents went.  It really was kind of crazy - I had no control over my interest. It just consumed me.  It started when I was about 10, and I had a Tomato Basil Creme Brûlée in San Tropez with my family.  Ever since that moment, I wanted to learn everything I could about food and the possibilities. 

What were some of the most important things you learned while staging at acclaimed restaurants like Le Bernadin and Per Se? What were your roles there? 
Discipline, dedication and respect for ingredients.  As a stage, I was really just watching everyone, cleaning vegetables, and taking it all in. 

You also worked for Gordon Ramsey at the London NYC. Is he as intense to work for as he seems on his television shows? 
His standards are extremely high and so are his expectations for his staff.  I respect him immensely. 

What has been your biggest kitchen flub? 
When I was working at a restaurant in South Florida, we had a big wine event for 50 people.  I was responsible for doing the braise and I accidentally left the pot on overnight.  When we came in the next morning, it was burnt and stuck to the pan - totally unusable. 

You opened Recette, a sophisticated restaurant, when many of your peers were opting to open casual, comfort
food-driven places. What made you go the high-end route? 
I don't necessarily feel that I went the high end route.  I am a cook. I wanted to cook. My motive wasn't to be rich and famous. I wanted to open a restaurant to do what I do, and I didn't want to put a limit on what kind of food I could put out. 

How is Recette and its concept different from some of the more traditional fine dining restaurants you have worked in, like Le Bernadin and Per Se?
Recette is totally different dining experience. Recette incorporates everything that would come to your mind when you think of a West Village, neighborhood dining spot. It's rustic, lively, causal and warm. I wanted to blend how I like to eat out with how I like to cook. 

What's the most difficult part about opening a restaurant?
This is a very loaded question, but I'll try to sum it up for you. It was one of the hardest things I have ever done in my life.  Dealing with the brokers and landlords; negotiating a lease; and making sure you are getting a good fair deal. Also, working with investors, the landmarks and buildings departments, the community board, the Liquor Authority, architects, HVAC, hooding and venting, neighbors, setting up procedures, accounts payable, HR, sales tax, hiring and training, developing a menu, testing recipes. The list goes on and on. Let alone all the anxiety of whether it's going to succeed. And then critics come through. It's a huge undertaking that requires a level of dedication that is above and beyond. I had no corporate infrastructure. It was just me, my wife, and my father. 

It sounds overwhelming! Now that your restaurant is open and thriving, describe your ideal meal at Recette.
I would start with a little bit of charcuterie, some Buffalo Sweet Breads, the Hamachi Crudo and Salt Cod Fritters. Then I'd move on to the Beef Carpaccio, some Spaghetti with Uni, the Scallops, and the Pork Belly.  This is a hard question to answer!

Can you describe your process for conceptualizing one of your favorite Recette dishes?
I get inspired by everything going on around me.  I am constantly researching and reading. I am inspired by other chefs. I am driven by seasonality of ingredients. When I have an idea of something I want to use, I might jot it down, and then the next day I'll think a technique to use. And then it all comes together. There's no magic to it. Ideas sometimes just come to me.

Would you ever consider opening a casual restaurant? 
Hard to think about the future, but you never know.

What neighborhood do you live in and where are some of your favorite places to dine there?
I live in Hudson Yards.  I get home really late and usually order from Skylight Diner. I don't really explore the neighborhood much. 

Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
Doing what I love day in and day out.  I try to stay in the moment as much as possible. I have a 9-month-old son. So I hope to take him everywhere to eat great food with me. 


You're on your death bead...Sex or dinner?
Sex and then dinner.

Recette
Address: 328 West 12th St. nr. Greenwich Street
Phone: 212-414-3000

You could say Julian Medina is a pioneer of refined Mexican and Latin American cooking in New York.  The Mexico City native first put his stamp on the city as the Chef de Cuisine at Maya in the 1990's, earning the restaurant two stars.  At the time, most people were still unfamiliar with authentic Mexican cooking.  "It was hard to even find Mexican ingredients," Medina said.

Twenty years later, times have changed for both New York and chef Medina.  In 2007, he opened a restaurant of his own in midtown's Theater District called Toloache, and hasn't looked back since. Four years and three more restaurants later (Yerba Buena & Yerba Buena Perry), Toloache is still Medina's favorite food child.  His newest venture is Coppelia, a Cuban-style diner opened 24/7. 

Medina isn't slowing down anytime soon.  In fact, he's got a taqueria in the works and hopes to own 10 restaurants in the next few years.  He's also got his sights set on Boston.

Single/Married/Divorced?
Married.

What did you want to be when you grew up?
A soccer player.

What were some of your favorite dishes to eat as a child growing up in Mexico City?
Tacos de Pastor.

What was your first job in food and what did you learn?
I worked for a pizzeria, where I learned how to make pizza in two minutes.

You were already the Chef de Cuisine at Maya when you decided to take classes at the French Culinary Institute. Why decide to go to culinary school when you already have a great deal of professional cooking experience? Would you recommend the culinary school tract for all aspiring chefs?
I felt that I needed to have the diploma and I always wanted to go to culinary school anyway.

A decade ago you worked as the executive chef at SushiSamba. What additional training did you receive to prepare for a position at a Japanese-centric restaurant?  Did you travel to Japan?  Are you the reason there are so many Latin American influences on the menu?
I read a lot of cooking books and learned a lot while I was on the job by spending time with the Japanese sushi chefs and cooks. I loved Japanese food even before I started working at Sushi Samba.

Do you think that New Yorkers' attitude toward Mexican cooking has changed or evolved at all since you started at Maya in the late '90s?
When I was at Maya, people didn't really know what fine Mexican cuisine was. It was hard to even find Mexican ingredients!

Do you think the Mexican cooking in New York has gotten better over the last five years? Aside from your restaurants, of course?
Yes, with the opening of several [influential] Mexican restaurants, people are more aware of true Mexican cooking.

How do you walk the line between reflecting traditional Mexican dishes and exhibiting your creativity as a chef at Toloache? Are you ever conflicted about experimenting with tradition and hundred year old recipes?
No, because I cook what I feel. I take traditional Mexican dishes and make them my own without crossing the line. I respect Mexican food and its traditions.

Of your four restaurants, which is your favorite and why?
Toloache, because it's the first one I opened and it's Mexican.

Both Yerba Buena and Yerba Buena Perry have especially excellent cocktail programs. How involved are you with the beverage menu and do you tailor any of your dishes to the cocktails?
I always talk to the bartenders about what's in season and perhaps even ask them to create a cocktail that I'll taste, enjoy and that complements the food. 

What inspired you to open Coppelia, a 24-7 Cuban-style diner that is unlike anything we have seen in New York?  What inspired the concept in the first place?
I believe that there is a lack of good Latin restaurants in New York, so I thought the best way to [fix that] was with a diner.

Describe your ideal meal at Coppelia.
Ceviche limeno, nachos, and a Cuban sandwich with yucca fries. Also, the lomo saltado and a dulce de leche chocolate cake for dessert.

Is it true you're opening a taqueria in the near future in Manhattan?  Where and when?
I hope so, but I don't have a place yet.

Would you ever consider opening a restaurant in another city? If so, which one?
I'd like to go to Boston.

Aside from possibly in New England, where do you see yourself in 10 years?
Working double the amount that I am now and having 10 more restaurants.

What neighborhood do you live in and what are some of your favorite restaurants there? 
Upper East Side. I go to Sushi Seki, Brasserie Jacques and El Paso.

What other New York chefs do you admire and why?
Gavin Kaysen at Cafe Boulud. He is very dedicated to his work and he's an amazing chef.

How often do you get to visit your hometown of Mexico City? Is there anything you ate there recently that's inspired you to create a dish in New York?
I try to go there once a year. I was recently in Oaxaca and I came up with a new dish called Tlayuda de Costilla - beef short rib in mole negro.

You're on your deathbed...Sex or dinner? (No, you can't have both.)
Dinner.