Top 33 Wolfgang Puck Quotes

The most important thing for me is to really buy the best ingredient.

When I’m in Los Angeles, my wife and I go to the farmers’ market with the kids every Sunday.

I grew up so poor in Austria that we never took a vacation with my family.

I left school when I was 14 to work in kitchens.

For me, I don’t expect to have a really amazing meal each time I dine out. Having a good meal with your loved ones – that’s what makes the experience.

I like Dover sole. It’s always one of my favorites. I like it when I’m in England. I eat it every day almost. I think it’s probably one of my favorite fish.

I think it’s really important to keep on staying motivated.

A lot of chefs are traditional and do it very well. But the ones who are the most successful are the ones who change things. That is why someone like Heston Blumenthal is a genius.

In L.A. you live in a big city, but you feel like you’re in the countryside. For example, I can be at home in the swimming pool and be five minutes from everything.

A chef is a mixture maybe of artistry and craft. You have to learn the craft really to get there.

It’s a myth that generally Asians are mostly vegetarians. The Japanese are the kings of red meat, but it’s expensive. The Chinese and Vietnamese love their pork. Many Indians, especially the Muslims, can’t live without their lamb.

New Yorkers think they have everything, all the best art and music. But really L.A. is a better place.

What I don’t like is breakfast in the morning. I have a double-espresso cappuccino, but no food.

You know, I never really thought of myself as a ‘celebrity.’ One of the titles that I like least is ‘celebrity chef.’

The good news about showcasing chefs and the TV shows is they’ve attracted a lot more smart kids to the profession than 30 years ago. On the downside, though, these young chefs all say they want their own restaurant and their own TV show.

If you’re cooking for a woman, make a good risotto and a salad. If you don’t have time to make desert you can go and buy some macaroons to have afterwards.

Restaurants are like having children: it’s fun to make them, maybe, but then you have them for good and bad. You are going to have to raise them and if something goes wrong when they are 30 years old, they will still be your little boy.

I like to be firm. But it is easier to be nice than to be nasty.

I always tell people that they are really the critics. If people come three times a week to your restaurant they are the ones who find something they really love.

When you meet someone, ask about what hobby they have, not what they do. People always ask me about cooking, but I prefer to talk about tennis or boxing.

One thing I always say is being a great chef today is not enough – you have to be a great businessman.

You see fewer and fewer chefs who are really big – most stay in shape.

I learned more from the one restaurant that didn’t work than from all the ones that were successes.

A good chef has to be a manager, a businessman and a great cook. To marry all three together is sometimes difficult.

When I was 27, if I didn’t put 15 things in one dish I wasn’t happy.

I think the time of the formal dinners is over.

Everybody has to put purees underneath everything now. It’s like people think we need the steak, and then we need some baby food with it.

A lot of restaurants serve good food, but they don’t have very good service.

I grew up in Austria, and for me real comfort food is Wiener Schnitzel. Wiener Schnitzel and mashed potatoes because it reminds me of my youth… It reminds me when I grow up and it feels very comforting.

Italian food is all about ingredients and it’s not fussy and it’s not fancy.

I tell everybody the same thing: You have to make every dish so when you taste it, you should remember it when you go home.

Cooking is like painting or writing a song. Just as there are only so many notes or colors, there are only so many flavors – it’s how you combine them that sets you apart.

Television in the ’80s was very limited. There was no Food Network.