Joining the Andaz 5th Avenue team this season, Michael Santoro brings over 10 years of diverse culinary experience, most recently serving as Owner and Executive Chef of The Mildred Restaurant in Philadelphia. In his new role, Chef Santoro oversees the hotel’s seasonally inspired restaurant, the shop, and the hotel’s cellar bar, the bar downstairs, which serves seasonal, pre-prohibition style cocktails and delectable Latin-style small plate dishes. Chef Santoro also leads the culinary offerings at the hotel’s meetings, events and entertaining space, Apartment 2E.
With over a decade immersed in the food scene, Chef Santoro carries a vast and diverse culinary history. From working in famed international Michelin Star restaurants including The Fat Duck in London and Mugaritz in Spain, to renowned New York City eateries such as Restaurant Gilt and Boqueria, Santoro offers incredible talent and expertise in the field. While working under acclaimed chef Andoni Luis Aduriz at Mugaritz in Spain, Santoro played an intensive research role, developing nouveau techniques that paid homage to wild-foraged seasonal products and produce cultivated on-site. “Every time I think of menu items and new foods,” says Santoro, “I tap into that part of my training to find their purity.”