On one of the biggest nights in Hollywood, expectations are sky high and the spotlight is shining bright. Not just for the hundreds of celebrities walking the red carpet at the Primetime Emmy® Awards Governors Ball – but also for the culinary team of Delaware North’s Patina Restaurant Group.
That team includes Gregg Wiele, Patina Restaurant Group’s executive chef of culinary. Wiele recently appeared on “Celebuzz’d,” a podcast appearing on the popular Hollywood gossip blog Celebuzz. He chatted with the host about his background, training and what’s on tap for the Emmys.
According to Wiele, his career at Patina began after a stint at the United States Air Force Academy. He was first hired by Patina Restaurant Group Founder and Master Chef Joachim Splichal as a part-time delivery driver to help pay for the new Mustang he had just bought. When Splichal gave him the opportunity to work in the kitchen, he said: “I just took to the atmosphere. There was a lot of adrenaline, action and creativity…I thought, ‘wow, I can get into this.’”
That attitude makes him a perfect fit to help lead the catering effort at events such as the Emmy Awards Governors Ball, which takes months of preparation and dozens of chefs. The effort is spearheaded by Wiele, alongside Splichal and Executive Pastry Chef Frania Mendivil.
“We probably started the day after the 2015 Emmys ended,” Wiele explained. “We talked about what went well, what didn’t go quite as well, and what we want to do for the following year.”
After that, they spent months researching, tasting and studying new culinary trends. In January, they wrote dozens of menu items which were then pared down and voted on by the Emmy committee. They then prepared the finalists for a tasting before the final menu was decided upon — the theme of which is Nature’s Elegance.
“Something that’s very important to us is making sure we adhere to the integrity of the seasons and respect what will actually be good in September,” Wiele said. That includes a mouth-watering menu that includes heirloom beets, rainbow carrots, tropical coconut mousse and more.
To hear Wiele’s full appearance on Celebuzz’d, click here.