Celebrity Chef Restaurants in Beverly Hills
Beverly Hills is a playground of the stars and its chefs in the kitchen are just as famous. Ranging from exquisite Michelin star-rated restaurants to quaint local favorites, the city offers numerous options to enjoy a meal prepared by some of the world’s most renowned restaurateurs.
Master Chef Helene An of Crustacean Beverly Hills, recognized as the mother of fusion cuisine and by the Smithsonian Museum with a Pioneer Award in Culinary Arts as the first to introduce Vietnamese cuisine to mainstream America, first learned the culinary arts from the family kitchen as a child in Vietnam. Although she left Vietnam in 1970s to San Francisco where she operated a family restaurant serving a fusion of Vietnamese, Chinese and French cooking, which no one understood at the time, she later found success with Crustacean San Francisco, where crowds flocked in, one by one. She essentially created her own cuisine – modern Asian and European fusion – to bridge the gap between the flavors of her home in Vietnam with something Americans would be familiar with. Thus, the idea would extend to her well-known Crustacean Beverly Hills, which has been wowing critics and crowds for more than two decades.
Massimo Bottura is the founder of three-Michelin-star restaurant, Osteria Francescana. Massimo Bottura’s dishes explore the deep roots of the Italian Kitchen and is set on the roof of Gucci’s Rodeo Drive store. Gucci Osteria, a winner of one Michelin star, is an intimate restaurant born from a childhood friendship between chef Massimo Bottura and CEO and president of Gucci Marco Bizzarri.
The restaurant space boasts outdoor seating and sprawling views of Beverly Hills. Using organic produce sourced from local farmer’s markets, the plates at Gucci Osteria honor the complex variety of culinary influences from around the world that can only be found in Los Angeles. The menu includes signature dishes such as chef Massimo’s famed Tortellini with Parmigiano Reggiano cream and the legendary Emilia burger, as well as new California-inspired dishes.
World-renowned chef Daniel Boulud will open his first West Coast restaurant in the near future. Boulud will bring his iconic Café Boulud to Beverly Hills at the Mandarin Oriental Residences development. The restaurant reenergizes California cuisine with an emphasis on fresh fare and creative updates to the classics.
Although Boulud’s crown jewel restaurant is the two-Michelin-starred Daniel in New York City, the chef has been in the years past crafting steakhouses, cafes, bistros and hotel restaurants across the globe, including outposts of Café Boulud, everywhere from Toronto and the Bahamas to Palm Beach, Florida. The chef’s modern interpretation of Café Boulud is based on his family’s original cafe in Lyon, France, founded by his grandparents.
Photo by Kris Connor
Evan Funke, a pasta master, has spent 15 years cooking alongside matriarchs in remote corners of Italy, as well as working at esteemed restaurants like Spago Beverly Hills. Now he has opened a restaurant, Funke, bearing his family name in Beverly Hills. He’s most well-known for his obsession with handmade pasta. And you can see that reflected in his Beverly Hills restaurant whose central focus is a two-story glass-and-steel workshop where Funke and his team meticulously make a dozen different pasta shapes. Funke, with panoramic views of palm trees and mountains at the top floor, has already welcomed A-list celebrities like David Geffen, Kris Jenner and Jeffrey Katzenberg. The focus of the menu is on Sicilian cooking, with pasta being the main draw. You can find each pasta of all shapes from various regions of Italy, described with its history on the menu with the name of the woman who taught him about it.
Turkish-born chef Nusret Gökçe, aka Salt Bae the international restaurateur, officially brings his renowned steaks, flair for over-the-top luxury dining and Instagram worthy salting techniques to “restaurant row” on Canon Drive.
Nusr-Et Steakhouse first opened its doors in 2010, and the Beverly Hills locale opened in 2021. By offering many unique options to meat lovers, Nusr-Et quickly brought extra flair to the steakhouse culture and serves as an indispensable location for its guests.
Nobu Matsuhisa means dining at its finest. His restaurants stretch across five continents, with over 40 locations across the globe. His food is enjoyed by millions of diners hungry for his innovative food and sleek atmosphere. His name is the springboard for this generation’s master chefs, who have gone on to open their own acclaimed eateries after their start under Nobu’s guidance. Yet every great movement has to start somewhere. For Nobu, it all began in Beverly Hills.
In 1987, the ambitious sushi chef opened his first restaurant in sunny Beverly Hills, bringing his inspired blend of Japanese and Peruvian cuisine to the public. When Matsuhisa’s doors first opened, a silhouette of Nobu was painted behind the sushi bar. The smoky grey profile of a 38 year old Nobu is still there more than 30 years later, and has become the logo to his ever expanding legacy.
Although his flagship still retains the low key décor from day one, it is distinguished by its skilled staff and an enormous menu packed with peerless dishes. Matsuhisa not only represents dining at its finest, it is the foundation of a culinary empire that is still growing today.
Wolfgang Puck is world renowned for the best of restaurant hospitality and the ultimate in all aspects of culinary arts. The celebrity chef has even expanded into catering and is one of the official caterers for the Academy Awards Governors Ball. Instead of solely being stationed in the kitchen, Wolfgang extends his passion for food to the stage. He has been featured in countless television shows including Iron Chef America and American Idol.
Wolfgang Puck's flagship restaurant, Spago Beverly Hills, is a must stop for visitors to the city. The master chef created a menu with his iconic farm-to-table philosophy, heightening the ever-popular California cuisine which initially catapulted Puck to stardom. An amazing feature is the restaurant's vast wine collection, which touts more than 30,000 bottles! Lucky diners might even catch a glimpse of Chef Puck preparing meals or greeting guests in Spago's dining room.
Chef Puck is also famous for his steaks, served at CUT Beverly Hills, which blends his modern sophistication with classic American cooking. The top-tier, contemporary restaurant is located in the Beverly Wilshire, A Four Seasons Hotel, which entices many celebrities. CUT Beverly Hills earned a recommendation from the Michelin Guide, California edition and continues to be the ultimate chic destination for food lovers and celebrities.
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Revised October 4, 2024