The Annual James Beard Birthday Dinner
Presented by the James Beard Foundation and Wynn Las Vegas Resort and Country Club in honor of the 103rd anniversary of James Beard's Birthday

Sunday, May 7, 2006
The Four Seasons Restaurant, New York City

Wooed by hotel titan Steve Wynn, who has played a critical role in bringing serious cuisine to Las Vegas, a handful of the culinary world’s highest rollers have come to the table—or to be more precise, they’re presiding over their own tables—at some of the most exciting restaurants ever to hit the Strip. Fortunately for those of us who don’t get to Sin City too often, diners at James Beard’s 103rd Birthday Dinner will be able to sample some of the best Vegas—and the Wynn Resort—have to offer when a selection of Wynn’s renowned chefs, all of whom count James Beard Foundation awards among their many accolades, come to the Four Seasons to lend some Vegas-style razzle-dazzle to the occasion.

Paul Bartolotta was just 24 when he was named chef de cuisine at the esteemed Ristorante San Domenico in Italy. He expanded his culinary horizons in France, training at Moulin de Mougins, Paul Bocuse, Troisgros, and Taillevent. Bartolotta opened San Domenico’s lauded New York outpost and spent nine years running the stoves at Chicago’s Spiaggia. He won the 1994 James Beard Foundation Best Chef: Midwest award, and was the recipient of the Insegna del Ristorante Italiano del Mondo in 1997. His namesake restaurant at the Wynn, Bartolotta Ristorante di Mare, showcases some of the Mediterranean’s best seafood and was nominated for the 2006 James Beard Foundation Best New Restaurant award.

Only in Las Vegas can diners get a taste of not one, but two permutations of the over-the-top DB Burger (the famed original counts foie gras and braised short ribs among its ingredients, while DB/West is stuffed with pulled pork, jalapeño, and tomato). Yes, Daniel Boulud’s finally in town, and the perpetual award-winner and cookbook maestro has opened his first ever brasserie at the Wynn with his usual finesse. “If you’d like to discover the difference between good and great eating,” exhorted John Curtas of KNPR Nevada Public Radio, “I suggest you run, not walk to the Daniel Boulud Brasserie.” Boulud has been nominated for the 2006 James Beard Foundation Restaurateur of the Year award.

At Alex, eponymous chef Alessandro Stratta focuses on the French Riviera. Stratta comes to the Wynn from the Mobil five-star, AAA five-diamond Renoir at the Mirage Hotel and Casino. He was on the opening staff of Alain Ducasse’s Louis XV in Monaco, went on to cook at NYC’s Le Cirque, and was just 24 when he was tapped to head Mary Elaine’s at the Phoenician in Scottsdale. In 1998 he won the James Beard Foundation award for Best Chef: Southwest.

Takashi Yagihashi established his status in the culinary pantheon as executive chef of Tribute in Farmington Hills, Michigan. Yagihashi originally trained under a top chef in his native Mito, Japan, and helped open restaurants for his mentor in the United States. He learned French technique on the line at Chicago’s Les Plumes and studied nouvelle cuisine at Yoshi’s Café before moving on to Ambria, where he ultimately became a partner. He opened Tribute in 1996 to critical raves and won the 2003 James Beard Foundation award for Best Chef: Midwest. At Okada, Yagihashi returns to his roots, bringing contemporary Japanese cuisine to the Wynn.

Grant MacPherson cooked on five continents and was a gold medalist at the 1992 Culinary Olympics in Frankfurt before landing in Las Vegas. No stranger to prestigious hotel kitchens, MacPherson had worked for the Regent, the Ritz-Carlton, the Four Seasons, Malaysia’s Datai Hotel, and the luxe Raffles before Wynn recruited him to head culinary operations at the Bellagio. At the Wynn, MacPherson has the considerable task of overseeing all culinary operations, including the resort’s 18 restaurants and an in-house bakery.

Frédéric Robert was fresh out of culinary school and working at Restaurant Alain Chapel in the Rhône Valley when he first met Alain Ducasse. The celebrated chef later recruited Robert for Restaurant Le Juana’s pastry chef post. In 1987 Robert helped Ducasse open Le Louis XV, which received three Michelin stars in just 18 months. He oversaw all pastry production for Ducasse’s 13 restaurants in six countries before he joined the Wynn in 2004. In addition to serving as the Wynn’s executive pastry chef, Robert runs the resort’s patisserie, Sugar & Ice, and crafts signature confections at Chocolat, the Wynn’s very grown-up candy shop.

Wine Director Danielle Price spent seven years heading up Smith and Wollensky’s wine program before joining the Wynn. In a break from most Vegas resorts, which pull their vintages from a single cellar, Price tailored individual wine programs for each restaurant in collaboration with the chefs and sommeliers, and made a point of sourcing hard-to-obtain wines. Thanks to Price, the Wynn opened with a $5 million, 80,000 bottle wine inventory, and she expects those numbers to grow exponentially as the restaurants expand their offerings.

Joining us once again will be Jack Daniel’s great grandniece, Lynn Tolley, who will raise a glass to Beard at dinner. During the cocktail reception, The Four Seasons will pour a special Jack Daniel’s cocktail developed just for the birthday celebration.