Julian Serrano
Picasso, The Bellagio Hotel, Las Vegas
first taped at Masa’s, San Francisco
http://www.bellagio.com
Born in the Spanish capital of Madrid, Julian Serrano cooked his way through several sections of the world before finding his home in a San Francisco French restaurant founded by a chef from Japan. In fact, you might say that Masa´s, the inspiration of the late Masataka Kobayashi, helped Serrano find himself. When Great Chefs first taped Julian Serrano, it was in the kitchen at Masa´s.
In the spirit of Masa, Serrano took French cuisine in San Francisco to a decidedly new level, using the freshest of ingredients, classic sauces, and artistic presentation. This follows naturally enough, since it was Masa himself who hired Serrano in May 1984 and taught him to fulfill his vision.
‚“Masa gave my life to me,‚” Serrano reflects. ‚“I finally realized that I could be a creative chef, that I could make beautiful things with talented people, that I could strive for perfection.‚”
That desire for perfection was basic to Kobayashi´s vision, but it was also a factor in Serrano´s upbringing and apprenticeship in the European system. A graduate of Escela Gastronomic PPO, the hotel management school in Marbella on Spain´s Costa del Sol, Serrano worked in some of Europe´s most celebrated kitchens: Lucas Carton in Paris, Hotel de France in Auch in southwest France, and Chez Max in Zurich.
The United States became his home port when Serrano embarked on a series of positions with Caribbean cruise liners sailing out of Miami. He next cooked in a Spanish restaurant in Nashville and a German restaurant called Beethoven in San Francisco before being hired at Masa´s.
After the death of the widely praised establishment´s founder, the top job at Masa´s was taken by William Galloway, with Serrano has his sous-chef. After a year, Serrano took a five-month-long trip to the Continent, honing his skills further with the likes of Andre Daquin, Alain Senderens, and Max Kehl. By the time he returned to Masa´s, it was time to take on the ultimate challenge as its executive chef.
With the acclaim he earned at Masa´s, it is no wonder that Julian Serrano was top-of-mind when the new Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas set out to showcase the greatest chefs with restaurants designed specifically for them and their cuisine. At Picasso, Serrano´s carefully prepared dishes must steal attention from the restaurant´s fabulous $50 million dollar art collection ‚Äî and it does. At Picasso Serrano was named ‚“Best Chef Southwest‚” by the James Beard Foundation, the first Las Vegas chef to be so honored. The restaurant even had its own cameo in the film ‚“Ocean´s Eleven‚”, so much so that Table 34 has become a frequent request. Serrano´s Picasso has earned five diamonds from AAA, and diners voted Picasso the Best Restaurant in Las Vegas in the Zagat Survey.
