Executive Chef Mario Alcocer
Have a plan. Watch the boss. Don’t make the same mistakes everyone else did. That was Mario Alcocer’s multi-point strategy for climbing to the head of the kitchen – and it worked. Appointed Executive Chef of Four Seasons Hotel Westlake Village, California in 2008, his culinary career is as notable for its accomplishments as for his modesty. “I’ve always tried to learn from my superiors and I’m still learning. While I’d never compare myself to other, more experienced executive chefs, I feel I’m like a painter who has finished a work and can finally stop to appreciate what he has created.”
Alcocer’s gig at Westlake Village is unique within Four Seasons because of its laser-beam focus on healthy dishes created under the guidance of the California Health & Longevity Institute. Though that may not sound all that interesting, there’s lots of room for creativity without clogging arteries, he says. “You can turn healthy ingredients into the most delectable fare by emphasising looks and taste.”
Using non-traditional cooking techniques is key. For instance, Alcocer poaches sea bass in olive oil, creating luscious fish that is rich in nutrients and flavour but devoid of fatty residue. Similarly, he uses golden tomatoes for good ol’ gazpacho and replaces high-calorie croutons with watermelon cubes marinated in balsamic vinegar to create sweet-and-tart refreshment with balance beyond mere crunch.
Alcocer insists that no ingredient is good unless it’s fresh. “I try to impress upon my chefs that we want guests to feel the seasonality of what they’re eating and to be able to talk with confidence about where things comes from.” He certainly gives his chefs plenty of opportunity to flex their culinary knowledge, divvying up teaching duties among staff for cooking and nutrition classes that are part of the Westlake Village experience.
A hands-on chef who prefers the kitchen to the office, Alcocer admits that he brought “a couple pounds of butter” to the Hotel when he was first hired for fear he’d never be able to cook with it again. Two years later and 25 pounds lighter, he can say with assurance, “I don’t have butter, but I make really good food.”
