Laurent Manrique - Chef De Cuisine of Peacock Alley
For the past three years, Peacock Alley Chef de Cuisine Laurent Manrique has successfully transformed this traditional restaurant into an ever-growing popular fine-dining establishment with his impeccable French style, elegance and outstanding cuisine.
Famed for his exquisite southwest French Provincial cuisine, Manrique joined the Mobil four-star rated Peacock Alley in 1992 and has since brought delight to restaurant-goers with his special dishes prepared with all natural and fresh products. Manrique's savory dishes are made to order using fresh herbs, broths and bouillons, with a seasonal emphasis on wild mushrooms, fresh Mallard duck, foie gras, game dishes and seafood.
Manrique's culinary inspirations come from the Gascon region of France where he was born. Specifically, the area close to Manrique's heart is called the "Grande Gascony," located in the southwest of France, south of the Garonne River near the Pyrenees. This rural farming region is known for its exceptional gastronomic quality and is the influence behind Manrique's culinary specialties which are accented by the aromas of the Gascon and Basque countrysides.
The 29 year old chef received his professional Aptitude Certificate and Diploma in Haute Cuisine in June of 1983 in Auch, France. After graduation, Manrique apprenticed under Roger Dufour at Relais de l'Armagnac in Luppe Violles. He then worked in Paris for Yan Jaco at the Michelin two-star Restaurant Le Toit de Passy, and at the Michelin three-star Restaurant Taillevent, training with Michel Rostang and Andre Daguin. Another influence for Manrique is Italian cooking which he learned while working as a sous chef at Le Rex Restaurant in Los Angeles.
Manrique studied wines with Emile Peynaud at the wine Academy in Bordeaux and wrote serveral articles for the French publication, "Cuisine et Vins de France." He is a member of the French Wine-Waiters, the Paris Association of Wine-Waiters, American Wine-Waiters Society, Chefs in America Association, Les Toques Blanches and Le Club De La Tour.
He has collaborated in special dinners with Daniel Boulud, Restaurant Daniel; Michel Richard of Citrus; Jean-Louis Palladin of the Watergate; Gray Kuntz of Restaurant Lespinasse; Eric Riper of Le Bernardin; and Claude Troisgros and Sylvain Portay of Le Cirque.
Manrique was also one of the French chefs selected to particpate in the preparation of a special dinner commemorating Julia Child's 80th birthday. He often travels throughout the world in an effort to exchange culinary skills with other top chefs. Last February, Manrique visited Southeast Asia on a culinary exchange and was part of a team of chefs who visited the Tokay vinyard in Hungary.
When in New York, famous chefs such as Paul Bocuse, Alain Ducasse, and Roger Verge always make sure they stop by Peacock Alley at The Waldorf-Astoria to savor Manrique's latest specialties also enjoyed by celebrities and notables such as Mrs. Jean MacArthur, U.S. General Douglas MacArthu's widow.
Peacock Alley is located off the main lobby at The Waldorf-Astoria at 301 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10022. For reservations, please call (212) 872-4895.
ERIC DUPAIX
MANAGER
PEACOCK ALLEY
Eric Dupaix assumed the position of manager of Peacock Alley, a Mobil four-star rated restaurant in May 1995. Most recently, he held the position of director of catering at the five star Hotel Manapany Cottages in the French Caribbean, member hotel of the European Committee of Excellence. He was also affiliated with the Institut Vatel in Paris, serving in several posts including professor of hotel facilities, professor of hotel engineering and technology, and maitre d'hotel of the instruction restaurant.
Dupaix, born in Lyon, France, began his career in the culinary industry with apprenticeships in Michelin two - and three -star restaurants in France as well as classes at the presigious Strasbourg Hotel and Catering School, culminating with a Masters degree in science and techincal studies from Robert Schumann University in Strasbourg, France.
As manager of Peacock Alley, Dupaix is charged with keeping the restaurant at the forefrong of New York's highly competitive culinary scene which he achieves through the implementation of innovative promotions and creative long-term planning. Dupaix relies on his 11 years of experience in the hospitality industry to oversee all daily operations of the restaurant.
Dupaix is a member of the Curonsky Academy of Gastronomy. Since February 1994, he has written gastronomic articles for the monthly St. Barth Magazine. He is also co-author of Tropical Food Festival, an annual magazine with a circulation of 40,000
