CleverRoot

s u m m e r 2 0 1 7 | 6 7 CHEF Michael Santoro, Kingbird at the Watergate Hotel, Washington, D.C. Marinade Background Before the Watergate Hotel, Executive Chef Michael Santoro lived and worked as a chef in six countries, most notably as Chef de Cuisine at The Fat Duck in England and Mugartiz in Spain. During the past ten years, he has opened two hotels and six restaurants domestically. About two years ago, says Chef Michael, "a recruiter let me know about the opening, and as soon as I heard Watergate Hotel, I was all in on it. It's an iconic property. Great history both political and culinary. I really like D.C. a lot, it's a great area. The food scene is really emerging, so that's how I came to be here. But yeah, origi- nally from the Cleveland, Ohio, area, so big Browns fan, big Cavs fan, big Indians fan." A Dollop of Philosophy My general approach has evolved. When I first started out, I tried to put everything out on the plate and show all my technique. But as you mature as chef you realize that you don't need all of it. My approach now to food is much more clean and anchored. Here at Kingbird, we pretty much start French and then adapt and play with and experiment with and develop from that. We want guests to come in and feel really excited and energized to be there. It's a completely different property from what you're going to find in D.C." Dash of Motivation Being a chef was pretty much the only thing professionally I was good at, although I like to think I could have been a pro golfer.. . The thing about being a chef is drive. You hear a lot about passion; that fades after seven years of cooking, but what's gonna get you through that is drive, and the thing that drives me the most is the creative process. Coming up with new dishes. Getting inspired by anything. You can go to an art exhibit. Or just pay attention to what's current in the world. Everything is so open-source lately because of things like Instagram and food and how it's shared. Now you can find out what some guy is doing in South Korea if you want. There's this open-source kind of connection of creating that makes it a lot of fun." Garnished with a Favorite Preparation "I have a five-year-old, so every Sunday night we make a pasta. This is one of my favorite things to make right now because my son enjoys it, and to get him to eat anything outside of peanut butter and jelly is a major feat right now in my life, so I enjoy cooking at home." The Pairing Robert Muehlich, Director of Food & Beverage, The Watergate Hotel, chimes in on behalf of the chef, "The Rosso di Montalcino Castello di Banfi was paired with bouillabaisse. The foundation of any Rosso di Montalcino is the Sangiovese grape, which is highly perfumed and aromatic, which pairs very well with the aromatic balance of our tableside infused broth; its acidity, even though it is a red wine, it helps to enhance the lobster and octopus." PHOTOS BY CAMERON WHITMAN Kingbird's bouil- labaisse served with Castello Banfi 2014 Rosso di Montalcino. ■cr

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