Hospitality Management
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Michael
Romano Union Square Cafe New York, NY |
Many chefs believe that a foundation in classic French technique, far from being an impediment, instead liberates creativity and stimulates improvisation. The career of Michael Romano, chef at New York's Union Square Cafe, validates this maxim.
Although Romano was born in the then-thriving Italian section of East Harlem in New York City and grew up on Neapolitan dishes, he excelled in classical French training at New York City College of Technology.Following graduation in 1975, he trained for several years under Michel Guerard at Regine's in both Paris and New York, and at Eugenie-les-Baines, Guerard's legendary Michelin three-star restaurant, where Romano received his training in modern sauce making.
After additional apprenticeships in France and Switzerland, Romano returned to the United States in 1984 to become the first American chef in the 27-year history of New York's La Caravelle. In the fall of 1988, Romano was lured to Union Square Cafe as executive chef by owner Danny Meyer. Meyer's instinct for adaptable talent paid off: Romano has easily traded a regimen of cooking refined French food for high-volume international food, primarily Italian with American and French accents.
Each evening of the week has its own special, such as Wednesday's whole roasted pig braised with garlic and rosemary, then served with a curl of pig crackling, sauteed greens, and roasted herbed new potatoes. The meals are regularly topped off by rich desserts.Union Square Cafe, under Romano's direction, has been awarded the coveted three-star rating by the New York Times, and in 1991 Romano was named by Food & Wine as one of America's top ten chefs.
