Pollack is the executive chef and owner of the trendy Sotto restaurant in Los Angeles, a southern Italian restaurant that specializes in Neapolitan cuisine. Along with chef and partner Steve Samson, Pollack was awarded a Rising Star Chef Award in 2010. He's a fierce talent in all things Italian, including blistered Neapolitan pies, braised meats, pasta dishes, and other treats that will make your heart skip a beat—his good looks are just the cherry on top.
Date-night dinner: I'm a big fan of spackcock chicken cooked under a brick in a hot cast iron pan. I'll season the bird the day before (assuming I'm thinking that far in advance) and dry out the skin with my lady's hairdryer 20 minutes before I plan to cook it. The crispy skin and juicy meat never fail to get lots of oohs and ahhs.
?Favorite way to sweat: I love distance running. There's something cathartic about running long distances that you don't get on shorter runs. It's like a vacation for the mind, because there's really nothing else you can accomplish during a run. You can't check emails, place orders, return phone calls. It's just you and the road.
Food splurge: I don't have a huge sweet tooth when it comes to dessert, but I love a sweet brunch—yeasted waffles, pancakes, French toast. There's a place by my house in Silver Lake that has, unequivocally, the greatest French toast I've ever had, perhaps that has ever existed. It's crunchy on the outside, fluffy in the middle, and comes atop a scoop of creamy mascarpone and marinated figs. It is the definition of irresistible. Period.
By contrast, Pollack’s obsession with Italian cuisine began later in life, while pursuing a degree in architecture from Brown University. During a semester abroad in Florence, Pollack, though impressed by the architectural masterpieces around him, was uniquely mesmerized by the local food scene. The profound appreciation for Italian cooking which for Samson had accumulated slowly throughout his youth seized Pollack in a matter of months, and, like Samson before him, Pollack realized that a career in anything but Italian food was simply not an option.
United by their almost religious devotion to Italian gastronomy, Samson and Pollack dreamed about opening a restaurant together from day one. In January 2009, they had the opportunity to do so when they opened Pizzeria Ortica in Orange County. There, they created a warm and inviting destination where customers could enjoy Neapolitan pizza and other regional Italian dishes. Together they garnered rave reviews from numerous publications, specifically for their wood-fired pizzas and homemade pastas. Notwithstanding the restaurant’s off-the-beaten-path location, Samson and Pollack attracted the attention of international culinary publication Starchefs, which honored them as Rising Stars in 2010; they were the only chefs in Orange County to receive this award. Yet despite the numerous accolades they received at Ortica, the two chefs always yearned to bring their cooking home to fellow Angelenos. They were fortunate enough to partner up with veteran restaurateur Bill Chait, to open Sotto — a southern Italian restaurant here in L.A. where blistered Neapolitan pies are featured alongside lesser-known regional specialties.
9575 WEST PICO BLVD LOS ANGELES, CA 90035
Dinner: Tues-Sun starting at 5:30 pm Lunch: Wed-Fri Noon – 2 pm
PH NO.310 277 0210 / FAX NO.310 277 0201
http://www.sottorestaurant.com/
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