Phillip Lopez
 Member since: November 13, 2008
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When Chef John Besh launches his American Sector restaurant in November 2009, anchoring the spectacular expansion of the National World War II Museum, his chef de cuisine will be right at home. New Orleans native Phillip Lopez knows a military environment as well as a professional kitchen: this child of a U.S. Army family spent his childhood around the world, on bases in Germany, France, Spain, Austria, Holland, and Puerto Rico, before launching his own culinary career in Virginia Beach.
Perhaps it is the military background of his early life that gives him a logistical edge when it comes to restaurants. He delights in imposing order on kitchens, from improving efficiency and communication, to managing inventory and training staff. Supervision and leadership seem to be in his blood – and then, there’s his cooking.
Lopez learned the ropes of the restaurant world at an Italian restaurant right out of high school. Without any formal training, he worked his way up from Pantry Chef to Executive Sous Chef in local restaurants in a matter of a few years; in 2005 he made his way back to New Orleans, where he’d been born, to work with Chef John Besh at August: arguably the finest restaurant in a city of fine restaurants. His job as Chef de Partie was interrupted by Katrina; the silver lining was that he was taken in by none other than Michel Richard, at Citronelle, to train as a pastry chef with the master in the nation’s capital.
When he returned to New Orleans it was as General Manager of John Besh’s newly formed catering company. The hard-working, entrepreneurial chef– and ex-Marine, himself – recognized Lopez’s gift for organization and put Lopez in charge of this highly effective and successful operation over the course of the next eight months, helping to feed thousands of relief workers and displaced people at five satellite camps. Besh Restaurant Group Catering is now the primary culinary response team for natural disasters in the five southern Gulf States. Lopez went on to work in all the other members of Besh’s restaurant family, first as executive sous chef at Besh Steak, then as opening executive sous chef at La Provence, in Lacombe, Louisiana – a position that involved creating a working farm to supply the restaurant with the freshest possible ingredients, livestock included. From this experience, and through his work with John Besh, Lopez has become an active member of the SlowFood organization, which champions farm-to-table foodways and a commitment to community and environment. In 2007, he then rose to the position of chef de cuisine at Lüke, before Besh tapped him to help open The American Sector at the National World War II Museum.
Phillip Lopez credits his time around the world, as well as his extensive training under world famous chefs (Alvin Williams and Jerry Bryan, in addition to Michel Richard and John Besh,) with making him a progressive force for new ideas in food preparation, techniques, textures, and service. Refining his skills over the last six years in all of the restaurants in the Besh Restaurant Group (plus BRG Catering) has given him a thorough appreciation of Besh’s culinary philosophy – and his mission to preserve the rich culinary heritage of New Orleans. At The American Sector, that goal extends to the best-loved foods of our whole country, from an era that is justly called its finest hour.
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| Email: chefplopez@gmail.com |
| Website: www.rootnola.com |
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