Los Angeles, California – For the historic re-opening of Dorchester Collection’s Hotel Bel-Air, Master Chef Wolfgang Puck and his Wolfgang Puck Fine Dining Group (WPFDG) debuted an entirely new food and beverage program at the property encompassing the restaurant, the quintessential garden terrace, the illustrious bar, in-room dining, banquets and special events. Anchored by a new signature restaurant called Wolfgang Puck at Hotel Bel-Air, Puck’s vision for the property’s culinary concept focuses on modern California cuisine with European and Mediterranean influences. All menus reflect the healthy California lifestyle and showcase the best of California’s ingredients, embracing produce from local farmers’ markets, all-natural poultry and sustainable seafood.
"To be a part of this extraordinary restoration is a great honor," said Wolfgang Puck. "The Hotel Bel-Air is one of the most beloved icons in Hollywood history and has created many wonderful memories for such a long time. It was important for us to respect its heritage, keeping menu favorites like the famous tortilla soup, while creating an entirely new concept that features the wonderful, fresh and local ingredients which surround us."
The indoor-outdoor dining venue of Wolfgang Puck at Hotel Bel-Air, open for breakfast, lunch, dinner and Sunday brunch, was given splendid new life by famed design firm Rockwell Group, and reflects the essence of its storied past. A study of modern elegance in a traditional environment, the evolved, innovative cooking of Wolfgang, Managing Partner Lee Hefter and Executive Chef Sonny Sweetman emphasizes simplicity and freshness above all. Gardens peppered throughout the grounds create an ideal backdrop for a journey through modern California cuisine with quintessential influences from Spain, France and Italy. The tranquil and idyllic setting evokes nature, while the menu follows suit with its celebration of farmers, fisheries and ranchers.
From the farmers come harvest market vegetable showpieces: an Autumn Salad is brimming with chestnuts, Matsutake mushrooms, pomegranate, Comice pears, and Fuyu persimmons. From the fisheries comes an assortment of inspirations from the sea including dishes like Nantucket Bay Scallop "Carpaccio" with yuzu citrus, shisho buds, aromatic flowers and smoked sea salt, and French Langoustines with local Tokyo turnip, seaweed emulsion, daikon, sunchokes and kohlrabi-orange puree. From the ranchers come hearty entrees comprised of Wild Scottish Pheasant with sweet & sour red cabbage and juniper, and a decadent Tasting of Three Sirloin Steaks (Creekstone Farms Prime, Snake River Farms Wagyu and Blackmore Ranch Pure Wagyu) cooked over Japanese Bincho charcoal. Elegant sweets reinterpret classics such as a Soufflé with cassis, huckleberries, blueberries and lemon gelato. At dinner, the menu is available a la carte or in the form of a four- or six-course Chef’s Degustation Menu with optional sommelier wine pairings.
For breakfast, lunch and Sunday brunch, a sense of comfort and refined relaxation reigns supreme. Luxurious breakfast items include The "H.B.A. Benedict" with Kurobuta pork cheeks and maple-bacon hollandaise and Macadamia Nut Waffles with coconut syrup, "bananas foster" ice cream and macadamia nut brittle which sit side-by-side with inspired details highlighted by pairings of icy granitas with seasonal fruit, house-cured salmon and fanciful sides of sautéed boudin noir. House-made breakfast pastries are indulgent signatures such as brown butter croissants, raisin and apricot Danishes, Pudwill Farms blueberry coffee cake, cocoa nib-dusted chocolate banana muffins, Belgian sugar-coated butter brioche, house-made "everything" bagels and bacon-cheddar herb biscuits. Lunch thrives on favorites such as Hand Cut Steak Tartare, Maryland Blue Crab Cakes, house-made Strozzapretti Bolognese pasta and Big Eye Tuna ‘Niçoise’ with salsa verde, along with comforting sandwich options such as a Fried Egg Sandwich with crispy bacon and tomato-quince chutney. The legendary Tortilla Soup lives on, re-imagined with crisp duck confit and guajillo chillies. All of the items above also are available at Sunday brunch, where guests can enjoy a sit-down, three-course menu, including a choice of champagne or mimosa, and an array of appetizer, entree and dessert options.
Simply named The Bar, the famous hotel hangout that has attracted so many notable regulars over the years is given a beverage revamp that references the heyday of cocktail cultures past, but with a decidedly of-the-moment twist. Classics consisting of a Hemingway Daiquiri and Bespoke Negroni meet new inceptions in the form of a socially aware HELP! Save The Bees with limoncello, thyme and lavender honey and a nostalgic Monroe’s Passion with passion fruit rum, ginger juice and chili syrup, inspired by the lively former regular. Forward-thinking specialties incorporate cocktails made with various styles of premium Japanese whiskeys and house-made concoctions from Earl Grey-infused gin to peach and lemon bitters. Bar bites include savory morsels composed of Garlic Chili Chorizo Prawns, Arancini, Roasted Smoked Bone Marrow and the popular mainstay Mesquite Grilled Black Angus Beef Burger with aged Vermont cheddar, shallot-jalapeno marmalade and garlic aioli, all available throughout the afternoon and late into the evening.
For the restaurant’s indoor-outdoor design, Rockwell Group embodied the glamour of the Golden Age of Hollywood conveyed in a fresh and elegant manner. Most significantly, guests can now dine in the warm sunshine or beneath a starry night sky in the expanded and primarily outdoor dining room, surrounded by the lush gardens overlooking Swan Lake. Akin to a plush private residence, many iconic elements were restored to their original character, while contemporary touches encourage interesting juxtapositions between old and new. Statement details within the indoor space are marked by multiple glass wine cellars displaying more than 2,400 bottles and a luxurious marble-clad hearth as the dramatic central focal point of the dining room. The Bar keeps its cozy lounge feel, with a grand piano, oversized wood-burning fireplace and familiar wood paneling, revived with new steely shades of graphite. Three "garden niches" extending to the outdoors add an open feel, along with fixtures and furnishings that mix masculine and feminine through nautical details, natural warm textiles and touches of brass. Throughout the dining and lounge spaces, bright pops of colorful artwork add a midcentury feel, with acrylic "Line" and "String" series pieces by Gary Lang, and a paper, hot glue and musical scroll installation by China Adams.
In addition to the restaurant and bar, Wolfgang and his team oversee and cater the social celebrations and corporate events for up to 300 in The Garden Ballroom, Palm Room and Swan Lake-adjacent lawn. In keeping with the feel of the Rockwell-designed public areas, the flexible event spaces are residential in scale, with French doors opening onto the airy Bel-Air gardens. Pre-function entertaining areas feature leather-clad walls on one side and antique mirror-clad walls on the other, reflecting the nearby gardenscape. Luxe touches are marked by a marbled mirror bar and custom birdcage pendant fixtures inspired by outdoor lanterns. An outdoor cocktail area resembles a conservatory, with an added outdoor terrace surrounded by blossoming hedges. The scene of many spectacular weddings throughout its history, the verdant, spacious lawn features a towering 100 year-old Sycamore tree and live swans within the jewel-like lake.
For more information regarding Wolfgang Puck at Hotel Bel-Air, please visit www.hotelbelair.com or www.wolfgangpuck.com, or call 310.472.1211.
Press contacts:
Hotel Bel-Air
Alisha Mahon, Tel: 310-909-1663 Email:
Brittany.Purvis@dorchestercollection.com
Leslie Lefkowitz, Tel: 212.255.8276 Email:
leslie@hawkpr.com
Hotel Bel-Air Food & Beverage
Bullfrog & Baum, Tel: 323.651.1380
Susan Hosmer, Email:
hosmer@bullfrogandbaum.com
Rachel Wolff, Email:
rachel@bullfrogandbaum.com
Wolfgang Puck
Stephanie Davis, Tel: 702-369-0558 Email:
Stephanie.davis@wolfgangpuck.com
Notes to the editor:
Dorchester Collection
Dorchester Collection is a portfolio of the world’s foremost luxury hotels in Europe and the USA, each of which reflects the distinctive culture of its destination. By applying its unrivalled experience and capability in owning and operating some of the greatest individual hotels, the company’s mission is to develop an impeccable group of the finest landmark hotels through acquisition as well as management of wholly-owned and part-owned hotels, and to enter into management agreements.
The current portfolio includes the following hotels (in order of them joining the group): The Dorchester, London; The Beverly Hills Hotel, Beverly Hills; Le Meurice, Paris; Hotel Plaza Athénée, Paris; Hotel Principe di Savoia, Milan; Hotel Bel-Air, Los Angeles; Coworth Park, Ascot, UK; 45 Park Lane, London; Le Richemond, Geneva
Wolfgang Puck Fine Dining Group
Wolfgang Puck’s legendary name carries an undeniable cachet, synonymous with a bold, innovative school of cooking that redefined fine dining in America and around the world. His trademark dishes, coupled with his unmistakable panache and passion, have revolutionized the culinary industry. The award-winning restaurants include Spago (Beverly Hills, Las Vegas, Maui and Beaver Creek); CUT (Beverly Hills, Las Vegas, Marina Bay Sands Singapore, 45 Park Lane London); Wolfgang Puck at Hotel Bel-Air (Los Angeles); Chinois (Santa Monica); Postrio Bar & Grill (Las Vegas); Trattoria del Lupo (Las Vegas); Wolfgang Puck Bar & Grill (Las Vegas and Los Angeles); Wolfgang Puck Pizzeria & Cucina (Las Vegas); Wolfgang Puck American Grille at Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa in Atlantic City; Wolfgang Puck Grille at MGM Grand Detroit; The Source by Wolfgang Puck at the Newseum in Washington, DC; and Five Sixty atop Reunion Tower in Dallas, TX. For more information, please visit www.wolfgangpuck.com.