Wolfgang Puck

I really love Paris. It's my favorite city.

I think the time of the formal dinners is over.

Italian food is all about ingredients and it's not fussy and it's not fancy.

I like to be firm. But it is easier to be nice than to be nasty.

You see fewer and fewer chefs who are really big - most stay in shape.

Restaurants are like having children: it's fun to make them, maybe, but then you have them for good and bad. You are going to have to raise them and if something goes wrong when they are 30 years old, they will still be your little boy.

Cooking is like painting or writing a song. Just as there are only so many notes or colors there are only so many flavors its how you combine them that sets you apart.

There's a lot of processed food in America and I know that can make some tourists who're used to fresh food feel sick.

A good chef has to be a manager, a businessman and a great cook. To marry all three together is sometimes difficult.

For me, cooking is an expression of the land where you are and the culture of that place.

I left school when I was 14 to work in kitchens.

When you meet someone, ask about what hobby they have, not what they do. People always ask me about cooking, but I prefer to talk about tennis or boxing.

The most important thing for me is to really buy the best ingredient.

It's a myth that generally Asians are mostly vegetarians. The Japanese are the kings of red meat, but it's expensive. The Chinese and Vietnamese love their pork. Many Indians, especially the Muslims, can't live without their lamb.

I always tell people that they are really the critics. If people come three times a week to your restaurant they are the ones who find something they really love.

I learned more from the one restaurant that didn't work than from all the ones that were successes.

It's very important in a restaurant to really do the right hiring because there's no restaurant that you have one cook and one chef and nobody else in the kitchen. Generally you have five, ten, 15 people with you. So that's really important is to train them right, but first you have to hire the right people.

I tell everybody the same thing: You have to make every dish so when you taste it, you should remember it when you go home.

If you're cooking for a woman, make a good risotto and a salad. If you don't have time to make desert you can go and buy some macaroons to have afterwards.

Everybody has to put purees underneath everything now. It's like people think we need the steak, and then we need some baby food with it.

A lot of restaurants serve good food, but they don't have very good service.

One thing I always say is being a great chef today is not enough - you have to be a great businessman.

I like Dover sole. It's always one of my favorites. I like it when I'm in England. I eat it every day almost. I think it's probably one of my favorite fish.

I believe that London is the most exciting food city in Europe.

For me, I don't expect to have a really amazing meal each time I dine out. Having a good meal with your loved ones - that's what makes the experience.

I grew up so poor in Austria that we never took a vacation with my family.

I grew up in Austria, and for me real comfort food is Wiener Schnitzel. Wiener Schnitzel and mashed potatoes because it reminds me of my youth... It reminds me when I grow up and it feels very comforting.