I learned from my grandmother, because we were cooking a lot for the farm. Breakfast, lunch, dinner.

Bill Blass came in all the time, and I would make him roast chicken with spring potatoes and spring porcini with spring onion. And baby artichokes. And never, ever did he find a better chicken. Norman Parkinson, one of the greatest photographers alive, came every lunch to Le Cirque. And every time he would clean up his plate with his bread and then he would take his marker and write on the plate how much he loved the food. I think at Le Cirque I learned how to make real food, which is what people crave, not just gimmicky things on a plate.

I like to go hear jazz late-night up in Harlem.

For me, the food I like to make is the food I can enjoy all the time anytime. Its not too calculated or technical.

Remember, it is never the knife's fault.

A beginner cook is going to have to be patient to really learn well. When you start to beat your master, that's when you're really starting to master the thing. But it's going to take a while. After that, you have to define what you want to be, who you want to be, where you want to be.

I am very concerned about nutrition and always try to be careful about what I eat.