Chef, Mentor, People Person
As a pillar in the NJ restaurant scene for multiple decades, I have had the pleasure to serve as a mentor to many of the top talents in the state. My professional accolades include being awarded 4 stars from the Star-Ledger; during my experience running the kitchens at Stage Left, Uproot, The Ryland Inn, and Restaurant Latour. Instrumental in the reopening the storied Ryland Inn, I was able to guide and collaborate with a team that garnered the first and only four-star review New Jersey Monthly has given in almost two decades, with Eric Levin identifying me as “a gifted chef whose time has come.” Among other professional acknowledgement, I’ve received The New York Times’ highest rating (Excellent), & AAA’s coveted Four Diamond Award.
“Ultimately, creating or reimaging a restaurant is all about collaboration with like-minded people and
a human connection; it’s emotional, real and authentic. It takes a community to conceive
one.”
felina….
Felina is one of the NJ’s most celebrated restaurants; the creation of a leading restaurant group, Landmark Hospitality, and Executive Chef Anthony Bucco. The airy industrial space houses a restaurant that is both sleek and reflective of Anthony Bucco’s inspired cuisine. The interplay of textures and color bring life and a vibrancy that embraces the restaurant’s place in the center of the Village of Ridgewood. The design draws inspiration from the former neo-classical bank; high ceilings, exposed brick, well-worn wood, and repurposed steel, ensure every detail from the ground up has been thoughtfully considered.
currently…
Earning a reputation as a stylish, rigorous chef with a strong point of view, has its virtue, but it is also a drain; physically and mentally. Relevance, often connected to ego, is subjective, but it is also incredibly personnel – and creates plenty of internal strife. Serving as chef- partner of Landmark Hospitality’s, critically acclaimed Felina Restaurant, in Ridgewood, NJ – I also double down as director of new development for Felina’s parent company, Landmark Hospitality.
ethos…
Always believed that to be a great “chef”, you need to be a great eater. The center of my culinary universe, happened to be the modest kitchen & garden at my grandparents’ home in Matawan, NJ. While I went on to a formal culinary education, my love of ingredients, respect for the farmer, and passion for building flavor started at his childhood dinner table. Ultimately it’s what led to my long-established commitment to sourcing locally and sustainably.
philanthropy…
A long-time supporter of numerous charitable causes, I have shifted my energy recently to focus solely on improvements throughout the Garden State; whether supporting the small family farmer, improving school lunch programs, feeding the hungry or supporting culinary education. Recently, I was appointed to the Executive Board of The New Jersey Restaurant and Hospitality Association, and I currently sit on the boards of The Ridgewood Chamber of Commerce, Hudson County Community College and The Art of Hospitality/Hospitality Workers Alliance.