Today we’d like to introduce you to Fabian Di Paolo.
Fabian, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
Passionate about food and seen my grandparents cook at home every day with all the Italian culture lead me to where I’m now, a food lover. My early experience in the hospitality industry led me to graduate at a young age in culinary school from Maussi Sebess International Culinary Institute. During my interim with MSIC, I’ve worked closely with what I named my mentor chefs, Chef Patrick Terrien a former Chef from Michelin Star Joel Robuchon at Nikko Hotel Paris and Pascal Pinaud of Le Cordon Bleu, France, where my love and desire of patisserie and confections strengthened.
Upon graduating, I went out to explore my family history and continue my study of international cuisines, with stagier training in Madrid and Barcelona, Spain to Torino and Milan, Italy before moving back to Buenos Aires where I took positions as the head baker at the Alvear Palace Hotel, an iconic and world-renowned luxury Hotel, and assistant Pastry Chef at the Sheraton Libertador Buenos Aires.
In 1993 I decided to move to New York, fulfilling a stagier position at Daniel Boulud before settling down in Miami, I continued to show my culinary strengths up and down the beach infusing my Italian-Spanish background with the Floribbean flair at several major hotels, The Westin Diplomat Resort and Spa, as Executive Pastry Chef, open the Luxury Collection in Ft Lauderdale as a Chef de Cuisine while I did my pastry expertise run by a great pastry chef for me to be focus in the managing operation with another great Italian New Yorker chef, Chef Don Pintabona, a former partner-chef of Tribecca Grill, a Robert De Niro restaurant, An in 2005 I was named Executive Pastry chef of the Trump International Beach Resort, a Mobile 4-star / 5-diamond property, but always with my nomad spirit I decided in 2010 to take the opportunity to work with Chef Jean Georges Vongerichten, one of the world most famous Chef, moving to Washington DC at his new property, J&G Steak House at the W Hotel as Executive Sous Chef, while I learn and feel passionate about the exotic and aromatic flavors from him, It was that time in DC were let me re think the approach and my relation with food and what I really want on my career, from that time I start dreaming with a place where I can fuse a whole latin passionate flavors with Mediterranean influences, but I knew things don’t happen from one day to the other, and I decide to move back to Miami after two years in DC to start planning what will be the next step to be on level closer to my dream. I was running a few South Beach restaurant at once as Corporate Executive Chef for Bice Group, The Victor Hotel, The Tides and The Cardozo, a Gloria and Emilio Stefan Hotel, it wasn’t what I really want, financially yes, was perfect, but still designed in my mine the own place.
To have more time to work on it, I knew I need it a break from kitchen and get back to Trump International property on Sunny Isles with the offer to be an F&B Manager to run food operations in their property outlets at the front of the house, this will give me more time to work and transfer on papers, design, ideas, plates, flavors and vision. Things happen for a reason and the Executive Chef was promoted as a Food & Beverage Director and they took me out of the office to became the Executive Chef & B, while I have the F&B Director who was the person make all the final decisions, I was the one executing and running the entire operation, I realize at that time, I was learning something crucial for what I was working for, running an entire operation, and I did for two more years, patience it was something I know I have to have in order to succeed, but never lose the sight of what I want.
The time has to arrive, in November 2017, an offer to be part of a project in Down Town Miami, a new restaurant concept, located in what is today The Gabriel Miami, a Curio Collection by Hilton, Cvltvra Restaurant born on December 2018, guided with a Chef hired from the hotel operations for design the concept and myself to be the one to work the entire menu, development, food concept and run the operation. A result of ending contract with the Chef who was working with me designing the concept, which we did working side by side during the entire year of construction, lead me to be the one who I’m right now, Finding my self named as the one who will decide what he wants, the chef, the cook, the runner, the busser, the one who get to the point looking around in the dining room and think this is it, the place I’ve always dream, the place where I create and combine the passion to work in what I love, cooking, Today you can find me every day in my restaurant, right at the entrance in my open kitchen, applying the final touches on the plates, running dishes to the table to get in touch with the most important part of the show, my customers, receiving their feedback, it is a crucial point for me to be a better cook every day.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
I’ll say nothing is easy, yet it was that time of my life where I find my self burnt in this career, the time I was chasing money to have a solid bank account to achieve my goal to open my own place, big mistake.
Took me a lot of time to change my mentality, to start chasing my why, and not money, I realize, money is always faster, at the beginning I find my self drinking every day, getting to the point to be anxious to leave work to get home and pour a few ice rocks and bourbon, that moment make me feel calm again, even knowing it wasn’t right. That time I decide to take a break for a few months, my friend laughing because I did say those days, Fabian is ’86” the terminology when we run out of an ingredient in the kitchen, set myself lock in my apartment not leaving out, seating in the sofa with my mine in blank, looking the ocean over my balcony with no answers at all for my own questions. But one person makes me change completely, my son, this young man, who born deaf, but never giving up, shows me the decision is mine to be where I want to be.
I start changing a glass of bourbon, to exercise, to run on the beach, to spend more time together, to enjoy simple things, I knew he is the reason, he is my why, and then I decide to get back on track when a phone call from my old company Trump International offer me to be F&B Manager, a good point to start over again.
We’d love to hear more about your work.
I’m a restaurant operator if I can use that terminology, running Cvltvra Restaurant, a unique concept serving 100% Latin menu with Mediterranean influences, when I’m saying Latin is because I don’t use one type of cuisine, like Peruvian, Mexican, Argentinian etc, I pick, what I think are the most influences flavors from Latin countries I did travel during my career and combine with Mediterranean flare, rise in Argentina with Italian family heritage, and travel all over Latin America and Europe along my career, gave me the opportunity to try and infuse flavors I’m very well known.
Those days people calling us, Chefs, but I’m a cook, I’m always will be a cook, I can say I’m known for what I work for, a gumption personality, always up for trying new things and pushing boundaries, never afraid of looking silly or of failing. If at first, I don’t succeed, I just keep trying, trying again. I’m always happy to take initiative, always resourceful, and always have more get-up-and-go than anyone else in the room since kindergarten!!
If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
Nothing, because I’m where I want to be and that is for the good and bad decisions I did take in the past, maybe less mistakes to be where I’m now, but sooner.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.cvltvra.com
- Phone: 305-808-3507
- Email: fdipaolo@cvltvra.com
- Instagram: fabian_di_paolo and cvltvra_restaurant
- Facebook: Cvltvra Restaurant
- Twitter: dont have
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/cvltvra-restaurant-miami
- Other: https://www.opentable.com/r/cvltvra-miami?avt=eyJ2IjoxLCJtIjowLCJwIjowfQ&corrid=75839c09-065b-44eb-8e71-9c3192864ce2&p=2&sd=2019-08-21+19%3A00
Image Credit:
@miami_chef, they manage my Instagram page, Nelson D Tirado and Nelson Tirado’s brothers.
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