A CUT Above: Interview with celebrity Chef Wolfgang Puck

Bahrain Confidential shares a conversation with, celebrity chef and restaurateur, Wolfgang Puck – the mind behind CUT at the Four Seasons Hotel Bahrain Bay.

The name Wolfgang Puck is synonymous with the best of restaurant hospitality and the ultimate in all aspects of the culinary arts. He was a superstar chef before the term superstar chef even existed.

With the rise of social media, just about any chef who has been viral calls themselves “celebrity chef”. However, the Austrian-born chef, with his world- famous chains and restaurants all over the world is a true titan of the industry. Just recently, he visited the Four Seasons Hotel Bahrain Bay and we took the opportunity to ask him a few questions about what’s new, what’s next and what makes him the best!

We rst met Chef Wolfgang Puck at The CUT Lounge, where he warmly greeted us with his charming personality and colorful stories about his restaurants, travels, family and work life. We’ve learned that

the celebrity chef started his life far away from any celebrities, in a small Austrian town called Sankt Veit an der Glan; where her mother was a chef. Chef Wolfgang began cooking as a child, at his mother’s side. With her encouragement, he started his formal training at 14 years of age.

As a young chef, Chef Wolgang worked in some of France’s greatest restaurants, including Maxim’s in Paris, the Hotel de Paris in Monaco, and the Michelin 3-starred L’Oustau de Baumanière in Provence. At the age of 24, he took the advice of a friend and left Europe for the United States. The rest, as they say, was history.

Chef Wolfgang Puck is well-versed in travelling – when we caught up with him, he had just been to Los Angeles, Tampa, Spain, New York and Riyadh. “Tomorrow, I’ll be in Istanbul”, he adds. Nevertheless, Bahrain remains to be his favorite out of all the places he had been to in the Middle East.

“CUT is our version of a modern steakhouse”, Chef Wolfgang explains when asked about his vision for the acclaimed restaurant. The sleek and modern American steak restaurant delivers innovation at every level through its unique culinary, service and design combination. However, he envisions more development for the restaurant: “There will be an evolution, we don’t want to stand still”.

“Food is such a big part of celebration”, Chef Wolfgang says. In line with this, a collection of distinctive dining and festive specials have been specially crafted by the Four Seasons Hotel Bahrain Bay’s culinary team in celebration of the year-end festivities.

We asked Chef Wolfgang if he enjoys cooking outside of his profession. He answers, “I love to cook at home and for my family all the time”. Speaking of food, we’ve learned that the celebrity chef has a strong dislike for peanut butter!

Despite owning 28 fine dining establishments worldwide, building a brand, publishing a number of books and having countless television appearances, Puck is not yet ready to rest on the laurels of his 50- year career… and we’re ready to witness what is yet to come.

PS: Chef Wolfgang advises cooking enthusiasts to “buy the best ingredients and try not to f*** it up”!


@chefwolfgangpuck @cutbahrain

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