Wolfgang Puck

Celebrity chef speaker Wolfgang Puck is known all over the world for his famous cuisine and his restaurant hospitality. Wolfgang’s empire consists of three separate entities: Wolfgang Puck Fine Dining Group, Wolfgang Puck Catering and Wolfgang Puck Worldwide, Inc.

Wolfgang’s mother, who was an Austrian chef, was the one who inspired Wolfgang and gave him his formal training at the youthful age of fourteen. Wolfgang started as a young chef in France’s greatest restaurants like, Maxim’s in Paris, the Hotel de Paris in Monaco and the Michelin three star restaurant, L’Oustau de Baumanière in Provence. Leaving Europe at the age of twenty-four for the United States, Wolfgang’s first job in the States was at the Indianapolis restaurant, La Tour. Leaving Indianapolis in 1975, Wolfgang Puck moved to Los Angeles and began work at Ma Masion in West Hollywood. His brilliant culinary skills and energetic personality made not only Ma Masion a magnet for the rich and famous, but also his delectable cuisine. He realized California’s potential in their cuisine and in the late 1970’s it gave rise to national attention. After leaving Ma Masion, Wolfgang went on to produce his first restaurant, Spago. Initially, Spago was located on the Sunset strip in West Hollywood and from the moment the doors opened, it was an immediate success. Dishes included fancy pizzas topped with smoked salmon and caviar, and Sonoma baby lamb with braised greens and rosemary. These dishes are what made Wolfgang and Spago known not just in Los Angeles but all over the world. Wolfgang won the James Beard Foundation awards for Outstanding Chef of the Year-twice, and Restaurant of the Year in 1994. He is the only chef to win the Chef of the Year Award two times.

Wolfgang then set out to open Chinois on Main in Santa Monica in California in 1983. Using California, Koreatown, Chinatown and Thaitown as inspiration, Wolfgang gave diners a fresh and artistic Asian-fusion menu that laid the ground works for fusion cooking in America. Chinois offers family style eating and features a full service bar with an assorted wine list. Chef Wolfgang Puck’s third restaurant, Postrio, was set off San Francisco’s Union Square in the prestigious Prescott Hotel. Emphasizing on local ingredients and the contemporary American cuisine, Postrio is a hit to Northern Californians. Postrio has been host to business tycoons, luminaries and former presidents and continues to impress with its culinary brilliance.

After years of success in West Hollywood, Wolfgang moved Spago to Cañon Drive in Beverly Hills and set forth to create a more elegant setting and an updated menu created by the award-winning Chef Lee Hefter and Executive Pastry Chef Sherry Yard. Spago now offers a seasonal menu where Wolfgang offers dishes from his Austrian childhood, Wienerschnitzel and Kaiserschmarren. Spago also offers daily menus including the freshest fish and produce of the season. In 2005, Spago was awarded Outstanding Service Award by the James Beard Foundation. In 2007 The Michelin Guide announced Spago received two stars, one of only three restaurants in the city to win this distinction. In 2010, Spago earned the esteemed Wine Spectator Grand Award.

Wolfgang’s next Michelin star restaurant was opened in 2006 named CUT. His sleek, modern steakhouse is set at the highly praised Beverly Wilshire and after only one year in operation, earned itself a Michelin Star. Also known for its collection of artwork, CUT now is showing its most recent collection from well-known artist John Baldessari; entitled “W/Studio 54 Series.”Wolfgang is a pioneer chef who has inspired the way many Americans cook and eat by fusing together the Asian and Californian techniques. Using the highest quality ingredients and changing the face of dining in cities all over the nation, he has paved the way for other distinguished chefs. Wolfgang and his Fine Dining Group have opened prestigious restaurants across the United States from Atlantic City’s Wolfgang Puck American Grille to Maui’s Spago at the Four Seasons Resort. In 2007 Wolfgang opened three restaurants, The Source, Wolfgang Puck Grille and another Spago in Colorado. Five Sixty in Dallas and Wolfgang Puck Bar & Grill at L.A. Live were opened in 2009 and in 2010 CUT was introduced in Singapore.

Not only is Wolfgang a world renowned chef, but he also has a line of frozen pizzas, iced coffees, all natural stocks and broths, and a line of cookware and appliances. Through all of his great achievements in the culinary industry, Wolfgang was inducted into the Culinary Hall of Fame in 2013. He has also appeared on many TV shows like Hell’s Kitchen, The Next Food Network Star, Keeping Up With the Kardashians, Top Chef, just to name a few. He is available for hire for personal appearances, endorsements, and corporate hospitality.