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Ladyhawk's Charbel Hayek on winning Top Chef and a new era of Lebanese food in LA. Plus, The War on Pizza, Vespertine 2.0 and the return of Cafe Tropical.
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We're joined by Charbel Hayek, a Top Chef champion and World-All Stars contestant who’s recently opened up one of Los Angeles’ buzziest new restaurants.
Charbel is the mastermind behind Ladyhawk, which opened last year inside of the La Peer Hotel in West Hollywood. Ladyhawk has been earning rave reviews for its forward-thinking Eastern Mediterranean menu, with LA Times critic Bill Addison calling it “Los Angeles’ most compelling Lebanese restaurant.”
Charbel joins us to talk about the journey that led him to Ladyhawk, from growing up in Beirut as the son of a chef, to becoming the youngest ever Top Chef winner in global franchise history.
Of course, I couldn’t let him leave without asking him all of the dirty deets on his Top Chef experience, especially with respect to last year’s World All-Stars in London. He breaks down just how grueling the filming schedule is, what it was like to win the Gaggan Anand challenge that allowed him to showcase his love for his country, and how he conceptualized the iconic onion dish that he’s become synonymous with in Top Chef-loving circles.
Also… There’s a War on Pizza playing out in New York City, a fascinating inside look at Vespertine 2.0, and the return of Cafe Tropical in Silver Lake.
Helpful links:
Ladyhawk https://ladyhawkrestaurant.com/
Bill Addison on Ladyhawk https://www.latimes.com/food/story/2024-01-25/ladyhawk-west-hollywood-lebanese-bill-addison-review
War on Pizza https://abc7ny.com/new-york-city-department-of-environmental-protection-pizzeria-emissions/13429285/
Vespertine 2.0 by Paul Feinstein https://www.finedininglovers.com/article/vespertine-jordan-kahn-interview
Cafe Tropical returns https://www.latimes.com/food/story/2024-03-15/cafe-tropical-reopen-return-sober-silver-lake
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