Photo: Courtesy of Four Seasons Restaurant
A few months after the departure of Fabio Trabocchi, The Four Seasons has announced the chefs who’ve replaced him. A press release reveals that for the past month, former Café Gray executive chef Larry Finn has been working with the restaurant’s sous-chef of ten years, Pecko Zantilaveevan. Read the release for more about the two toques and their new prix-fixe menus ranging from $25 to $85.
New York, New York (April 19, 2010) - Today the Four Seasons revealed that one month ago, two chefs quietly accepted the top toques in the legendary midtown Manhattan restaurant. Sharing the role of Chef de Cuisine are Pecko Zantilaveevan, a Thai native who has been the restaurant’s executive sous chef for the last 10 years and Larry Finn, formerly the executive chef of Gray Kunz’s Café Gray.
“We couldn’t be happier with this team,” said Four Seasons co-owner Julian Niccolini. “Pecko is an extremely talented chef. His food is nothing short of spectacular. In fact in every major review we’ve had in the last 15 years, his dishes have always been spotlighted.”
“Larry is his perfect compliment,” added co-owner Alex von Bidder. “His pedigree is impeccable, having worked with so many superb chefs. Together he and Pecko are a team that shares a love for the classic, healthy, seasonal dishes that have alway been a part of the Four Seasons philosophy.”
“And, they’re already working together like long time collaborators,” Niccolini revealed. “They decided they wanted Larry’s arrival to be a stealth one, but after a month of preparing for this announcement, “Pecko and Larry are ready to unveil their delicious collaboration: a collection of four prix-fixe menus, priced at 25, 45, 65 and 85.
A native of Thailand who immigrated to New York in his late teens, Pecko Zantilaveevan got his start in New York City restaurants with Christian Delouvrier at Restaurant Maurice. Encouraged by Chef Delouvrier, who saw great promise in the young cook, Zantilaveevan accepted a line cook position with Daniel Boulud who was then Le Cirque’s executive chef. After a year at Le Cirque, Pecko was recruited by Ed Brown to open Tropica, He was later promoted to sous chef. After three years there, Chef Brown named Zantilaveevan the Sea Grill’s head line cook. Pecko Zantilaveevan began working as a sous chef in the Four Seasons in 1996. In 2000, he was promoted to executive sous chef. Pecko attended the Culinary Institute of America and is married with three children.
Larry Finn is an American-born chef who has cooked in some of America’s most acclaimed restaurant’s, including as opening executive chef in Gray Kunz’s Café Gray, executive sous chef in Michael Romano’s Union Square Cafe, in San Francisco’s four-star Campton Place with Todd Humphries and in Patricia Yeo’s AZ. Chef Finn helped design Café Gray’s majestic kitchen in the Time Warner Center and worked with Gray Kunz in writing, food styling and recipe testing for The Elements of Taste. Married with two children and a graduate of Johnson & Wales, Larry has been working in restaurant since high school.
