Questions & Answers
Where did you come up with the ideas for the dishes on your menu?

When I was putting this menu together, I first started by sticking with what I knew- The Basics: Chicken Parmesan, Crab Cakes, Greens & Beans etc...then I would put my own twist on each...kind of how all the judges on American Idol tell the contestants to take the song and make it their own. Same Idea here, I took the basic home-style cuisine that I was brought up on and made it my own. I wanted to create new Italian Classics. So I spent a few years using the simple method of trial and error and that got me to where I am now.

Now, this is either going to make me sound dedicated to what I do or like a complete loser, I'll let you decide, but when I was in high school and my friends would call and ask me to hang out and do normal teenagers things, I would sometimes make an excuse and instead, go to the store and buy different Ingredients- then come back home and start cooking! And it just so happens that at home in that kitchen was where Otto's Original Apple Poppy Vinaigrette was created at one o'clock in the morning, (I remember the time because I woke my parents up to feed them celery and carrot sticks drenched in the new dressing- like they cared, it was one in the morning!) In that same kitchen I perfected the Chicken Pignoli because I happened to buy pine nuts that night.

The Food on this menu is a part of me in a way, it's what I know, but more importantly it feels good to make and feels even better to share with all of you. The best part about creating a menu is that everything is always changing-the seasons and the trends in food and people. What I love the most is that I still get to experiment with food - except this time I have my own kitchen to do it in.