Q & A With Park Avenue Chef Kevin Lasko

Chef Kevin Lasko’s  career trajectory is proof that anything is possible in the kitchen.  Lasko has come a long way from working as a short order cook at the Jersey Shore to working for Jean-Georges Vongerichten at the Mercer Kitchen in just a few years.   “I didn’t even know who Jean-Georges was when I first started,” Lasko admits.  “But the food was just so much better than anything I had ever seen.”

Lasko is now the executive chef at the uber-seasonal Park Avenue restaurant, planning a new, seasonally-driven menu four times a year. “That’s the biggest challenge,” Lasko said. “Trying to figure out the next season’s menu and developing new dishes when there are no products available from the next season.”  While it may be a bit of a challenge, Lasko will soon get to plan for his favorite incarnation: Park Avenue Spring. “The English garden decor is awesome and there are a ton of new ingredients,” he said.  Spring can’t arrive soon enough.

Single/Married/Divorced
Married

What did you want to be when you grew up?
I went through a lot of phases. One of the first that I can remember was wanting to own a bed & breakfast on a lake, so I could go fishing everyday. I was always developing a plan. I was probably only 8 or so, and I would be drawing diagrams and ordering brochures on land for sale in remote places.  I actually still want to do it.  One day, that will be my retirement.

What was your first job in food and what did you learn?
My first job was at a fish market and take-out place.  I learned a ton, mainly that cooking and serving people was fun and challenging everyday. On my first day, the boss had me clean a fryer that must have been 20 years old and had never been cleaned. There was literally inches of caked-on grease. Every five minutes I was telling him I was done. He kept saying he wanted it to look like new. Six hours later I was done. I learned a lot from that.

Tell us about some of your experiences as a short-order cook working at Jenkinson’s at the Jersey Shore.
It was chaotic, but always fun.  I would make cheesesteaks for six hours straight.  Inside Jenkinson’s where I worked, there was a night club in the back. When the club closed at 2 am, all the revelers wanted pizza and they were willing to do anything for it. Girls would flash us, guys would offer us $100 for a pie. There were also a lot of fights at that time, true “Jersey Shore”-style.

What made you want to break into fine dining?
When I had to go on my second internship for school, I had no idea where to go. A friend was going to New York City. I was lucky to get a job at Mercer Kitchen. When I started I didn’t even know who Jean-Georges Vongerichten was. The food was just so much different and better than anything I had ever seen. That was really the turning point, when I realized what food could be.

Who are your culinary influences and mentors?
Any chef whose food I have eaten or book I have read are all influences. Harold Moore, who was the chef at Montrachet when I worked there, was probably my biggest mentor. He taught me a lot. More so than actual cooking, I learned a lot of philosophies on life and running a kitchen that I still follow today. He was like a father to me. And Craig Koketsu obviously. I am very grateful that I have the opportunity to work with him everyday, as he is a great chef with an amazing palate and can always find a way to make a dish better.

What are some of the challenges with creating seasonal menu?
The biggest challenge is trying to figure out the next season’s menu and developing new dishes when there are no products available from the next season.

What’s your favorite season at the restaurant?
Hands down, spring. The décor is awesome. It’s an English garden theme. There are tons of new ingredients, and it’s also after winter, which is the longest season at the restaurant.

What inspired you to create the ingenious, open-faced sandwich with scallops and bacon?
I can’t take credit for that; Craig actually made that the day after we got our New York Times review.  All I can remember is that we were all really hung over and he had ground up bacon, the same way as in the sandwich, the night before at Babbo.

What advice would you give to chefs looking to rise through the ranks?
If you aren’t prepared to make this your life, don’t do it.

What neighborhood do you live in and what are some of your favorite local eateries?
I live in Woodside, Queens and there’s so much great ethnic food!  Obviously Sripraphai, just wish they delivered. Taqueria Coatzingo for Mexican. Sammy’s Halal, a Vendy Award winner! Peppinos Pizza has a great old school “grandma pie”.  Engeline’s, a Filipino spot probably has one of the best cheap eats in New York:  It’s called sizzling ssig, a pig head served in a smoking hot cast iron pan, so it’s nice and crispy with a raw egg yolk on top and kalamansi juice on the side. .

What are your goals for the future?
Just working on making Park Avenue better every season, discovering new techniques and flavor combinations.

Any new plans on the horizon?
I’m looking forward to working with the remaining artists from our collaboration with Creative Time. Other than that, I’m going to Bali in June and I’m looking forward to lots of new ingredients and flavors there.