New York City Wine & Food Festival
Emile Castillo
Born in Spain, trained in France and Americanized in New York! Chef Emile Castillo, Executive Chef of Le Parker Meridien Hotel in New York, has put all of his cultural and educational ingredients in a blender and the result is a surprising chef, as comfortable with international cuisine as he is with blueberry pancakes!
His journey took him to London, West Africa, Indonesia, the Bahamas, Sri Lanka and finally to New York where has been the overseer of all food operations since 1991 at Le Parker Meridien Hotel.
He has been able to create restaurant and banquet menus that are known for their special appeal and uniqueness. In 1998, he was part of the team responsible for developing the menu for NORMA’S which has been tauted as serving “the best breakfast in New York City.” Here, he was able to take his flair for sauces and aptly apply them to the least likely place you would find sauce — breakfast! Mango Fruit Salsa, Berry Hollandaise and Sweet Carrot Payasam are just a few that distinguish this all day breakfast restaurant from any other.
Chefing in a hotel, the need for creativity (and the opportunity to use it!) is never ending. Castillo gets to use his “other side” creating dinners fit for kings and queens (as he did in Sri Lanka), but with a twist. The banquet department offers menus that take “banquet boredom” and turn it into restaurant dining. From Steak Au Poivre with Pommes Dauphine to Roasted Split Cornish Game Hen with Sweet Razz-berry Sauce to Pan-Seared Salmon with Asian Ginger Sauce on Baby Bok Choy — Chef Castillo’s talents flourish.
Castillo became an executive chef at the age of twenty-nine; ready to take on the world. Now, twenty-one years later, he has taken on The Big Apple and succeeded in making an imprint with every dish that comes out of the kitchens at Le Parker Meridien.
New York City Wine & Food Festival/Terra USA
