Sirio : the story of my life and Le Cirque / Sirio Maccioni and Peter Elliott.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Maccioni, Sirio.

Contributor:

Elliott, Peter J.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Maccioni, Sirio.

Le Cirque (Restaurant).

Restaurateurs--United States--Biography.

Restaurateurs.

United States.

Genre:

Biographies.

Physical Description:

xiii, 416 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

Hoboken, NJ : John Wiley & Sons, [2004]

Summary:

Sirio Maccioni is a living legend, a restaurateur extraordinaire who has wined and dined high society in New York for nearly half a century. Along the way, he helped launch the careers of many illustrious chefs -- David Bouley, Daniel Boulud, and Jacques Torres among them -- and befriended a host of celebrities in the arts, politics, and business, from Frank Sinatra and Frank Zappa to Nancy Reagan and Ivana Trump. Now Maccinoi lets us into his world, revealing the secrets that have made his Le Cirque one of the world's most celebrated restaurants.

With the help of award-winning Bloomberg restaurant critic Peter Elliot, Maccioni recounts the story of his life and his restaurant career. Beginning with his childhood in rural Tuscany during World War II and the tragedies and privations that left him determined to pursue success at the world's finest restaurants, he shares a journey that took him to post-war Paris and Hamburg and the nightlife of pre-Castro Cuba and finally to New York. By 1961, the dashing young Maccioni had become maitre d' at New York's most storied restaurant, the Colony. Within thirteen years, he had the experience and contacts he needed to launch his own restaurant, Le Cirque, which quickly became the hub of cafe society in New York.

From hiring the right chefs and revolutionizing the way top restaurants operate to popularizing now-famous dishes such as pasta primavera and creme brulee, Maccioni reveals how he made Le Cirque such a long-running success -- a success that reached new heights when the restaurant moved to a new location in 1997. Along the way, Maccioni explains how he's dealt with defecting chefs and demanding customers. And through it all, he pays tribute to his proud Tuscan roots and to his wife and their three sons, who operate the family's other New York restaurant, Osteria del Circo, as well as restaurants in Las Vegas and Mexico City. Like Maccioni himself, Sirio is full of passion, energy, and life -- the unforgettable story of the world's most extraordinary restaurateur.

Contents:

Angoscia

Welcome to Le Cirque 2

The Maccionis of Montecatini 8

"Always Tell the Truth" 19

It's Always About Leaving 31

Leaving Home

Getting Started in Paris 60

The Next Generation of Chefs 72

Hamburg 80

The Home Lines 87

Arriving

"He's Good, but He's Italian" 108

From Delmonico's to the Colony 119

Maitre d'! 129

Planning a Restaurant 149

Opening Le Cirque 164

Restaurant Revolutionary

The Restaurateur 200

Kids, Wine, and Creme Brulee 210

The Ladies and Men of Le Cirque 222

The Triumph of Simplicity 238

The Prodigal Son 259

Losing and Winning 270

Three-Ring Circus

Sinatra 304

Twentieth Anniversary 308

Osteria del Circo: A Family Restaurant? 314

The Palace 327

Le Cirque 2000 343

New Directions 359

Don't Play Games with God 376.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 405-406) and index.

ISBN:

0471204560

OCLC:

54677462