Close your eyes and place your finger on a map. Wherever it lands, that's the theme of the evening. So many times we settle for routine dishes. This forces you to try new cuisines.

I really want to be a rock star.

I can teach a chimp how to make linguini and clams. I can't teach a chimp to dream about it and think about how great it is.

Bologna is the best city in Italy for food and has the least number of tourists. With its medieval beauty, it has it all.

The Hamptons are usually filled with what I had hoped to leave behind in New York City.

Chefs don't actually say 'That's a spicy meat-a-ball,' except to indicate that there's a bomb threat in the restaurant without alarming the customers. Terrorism is the spiciest meatball there is.

I obsess everyday about everything. Not only about what we do well but what we can do better... In the end, the only reason I am motivated to do what I do is for the hedonistic pleasures of the table.