Claude Soliard (Switzerland)
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| Claude Soliard is one of "The World's Most Influential, creative and important Chefs" |
In 1998 Claude Solliard opened Seppi's, nested in the Parker Meridien Hotel. Chef Claude has worked for many years in Switzerland and New York at restaurants that include Le Cirque, l'Espinasse, and Raoul's. Chef Claude Solliard also cooked at the James Beard Foundation, was featured on the Food Channel, and various magazines including the New York Post, the New York Observer, Runner World, and Crain's.
Nestled in Le Parker Meridien Hotel in New York City, Chef Claude
Solliard reigns supreme in the kitchen of Seppi's where the culinary
technical demands of his European education shine brightly in this
French Bistro. Seppi's is the culmination of a decade and a half of
hands-on training, which Solliard attained in his native Switzerland and
his adopted New York City, where he's worked in some of the finest
establishments.
Lunch or dinner at Seppi's might include such classical French fare as
Escargots A L'Ail (snails in garlic butter) and Terrine De Foie Gras
(duck liver), or Steak Au Poivre. It's traditional bistro
fare—unpretentious, substantial, and deeply satisfying—in the heart of
New York City.
Green Pastures
Raised on a small family farm and winery near Sion, Switzerland on the
northern Italian border, Claude Solliard experienced a classic
gastronomic upbringing—picking fresh cèpes and chanterelles in the dark
of early morning and then milking the cows and tending to the demands of
operating a winery.
Early on, it became clear to the young Solliard that cooking would be
his life's work. What with Italy to the south, France to the east, and
Germany and Austria to the north and west respectively, a gastronomic
undertaking would be easy to achieve. And so, at the canonical age of
16, Solliard left the farm to work at various French restaurants all
across Switzerland. His training began at Restaurant Le Chalet in
Valais, Switzerland. From there, he ventured to Hotel Vieux Stand,
Apparthotel Rosablanche, and finally to Restaurant du Soleil.
From Switzerland to The Big Apple
At 22, Solliard jumped on an opportunity to stretch his young wings
across the Atlantic, landing in Long Island at Berclaz and La Réserve in
New York City. New York's food connoisseurs appreciated Solliard's
philosophy—food should be left largely untouched and pure. But while
French cooking was in Solliard's heart, Italian cookery remained an
untapped attraction for him.
It was at New York's San Domenico restaurant that Solliard first
satiated his desire to try his hand at Italian cooking. Almost
immediately he was offered a position in San Domenico's kitchen. At the
same time, Gray Kunz offered him a job at the famed Lespinasse in the
St. Regis Hotel. Instead of choosing one over the other, Solliard worked
both jobs—Lespinasse mornings, San Domenico evenings. And, he still
managed to squeeze in an apprenticeship at Le Cirque under Jacques
Torres who was then the executive pastry chef. It was at Le Cirque where
Solliard learned the intricacies of chocolate and pastry.
For the next several years, Chef Solliard continued his NYC gastronomic
survey spending two years as Executive Chef at Rakel, and then as
Executive Chef at Pierre Au Tunnel, before landing at Raoul's Restaurant
where he remained for five years.
At long last, in 1998, Chef Solliard became a restaurant owner. At
Seppi's, partnering with Paolo Calamary Serge and Guy Raouls in 2001, he
became the solo Owner of Seppi's. He was also featured in several
magazines such as The New York Post, The Daily News, and Runner's World.
He started importing Chef Claude's Kombu Noodle and later partnered in
La Saviesanne Dream product with Frank Debond and Donna Hughes. He
hosted dinner at the James Beard Foundation, got Two Stars in the New
York Observer, and worked on the movie sets of Addicted to Love and
Perfect Murder. The boy from Switzerland interweaves 15 years of
professional experience with an inseparable attachment to the Swiss
mountainside where fresh herbs, mushrooms, and cow's milk are everyday
fare. Seppi's is the culmination of a love of food and a chef's dream of
owning his own French bistro in Manhattan. He's "newyorksmart."
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