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Chef Laurent Tourondel will create his flagship restaurant in the form of an American Brasserie, opening fall 2011 at Cassa Hotel and Residences in midtown Manhattan, serving breakfast, lunch and dinner daily. In addition, beverage service will be provided in the hotel’s unique vertical garden that opens to the outdoor urban setting - accessed from the hotel’s lobby by a catwalk suspended over the restaurant. Chef Tourondel and his team will provide room service to the 165 guest accommodations and 57 residences. A private dining and board room for 36, and meeting room that can accommodate 74 are located on the 10th floor, each offering private terraces. Chef Tourondel’s new dining concept and brand will be revealed in the coming weeks, while the opening is scheduled spring 2012.
A native of France, Tourondel parlayed his love of food at an early age and entered a four year culinary program to hone his skills and his classic French training is still evident today. After graduating he received his first post as Chef to the Admiral of the French Navy. Following his departure from the military he gained further experience in several restaurants in France and then traveled to London where he cooked at the famed Gentlemen’s Club, Boodle’s. In the years that followed he worked under the tutelage of Jacques Maximin at Restaurant Ledoyen in Paris and then in Moscow at the Restaurant Mercury in the Hotel InterContinental. Tourondel then moved to world renown three-star Michelin Relais & Chateau Troisgros, before taking his post as Executive Chef of C.T., Claude Troisgros’ debut restaurant in New York City. On to the burgeoning restaurant scene in Las Vegas, Tourondel became Executive Chef at Palace Court Restaurant at the World famous Caesar’s Palace Hotel & Casino, before returning to New York City to create the highly acclaimed Cello. When Cello closed its doors in 2002, Laurent saw an opportunity to explore new territory where he spent time traveling and exploring new cuisines in South America, Asia and Africa to further develop his own cooking voice.
Chef Tourondel returned to the states in 2004 to open BLT Steak, BLT Fish, BLT Prime, BLT Burger, BLT Market. Currently he serves as Executive Chef at Brasserie Ruhlmann located at Rockefeller Center in Manhattan and is also involved in 9 BLT Restaurants around the world. In 2010, Tourondel left BLT to create and build his own brand beginning with LT Burger in Sag Harbor, and LT Burger and LT Signature in Panama. Most recently, Tourondel teamed with Ralph Lauren in Paris at Restaurant Ralph, a perfect match as both men celebrate iconic Americana. Chef Tourondel will build on his past success and continue to develop one of his new brand of restaurants at Cassa Hotel and Residences.
In October 2007, Bon Appétit magazine named Tourondel Restaurateur of the Year. This award guaranteed his place among the top chefs in the culinary world. Tourondel has published three cookbooks, Go Fish: Fresh Ideas for American Seafood (J. Wiley & sons, 2007), Bistro Laurent Tourondel: New American Bistro Cooking (J. Wiley & Sons, 2007), which earned him a 2008 James Beard Foundation Award nomination, and Fresh from the Market: Seasonal Cooking with Laurent Tourondel, (J. Wiley & Sons, 2010)
