Pino Maffeo
Master Chef and Restaurant Owner
Pino Maffeo’s Italian family has always held cooking and cuisine as a top priority, so it was no wonder that this East Boston native felt a calling toward a culinary career. While attending Newbury Culinary College he worked at several restaurants learning the art of world cuisine from European chefs. Interested in learning the business end of the restaurant, Maffeo took a job as Task Force Chef for Marriott Corporation. In a year and a half working with master chef Oliver croft and he opened seven restaurants throughout the country. While consulting on a restaurant in San Francisco he realized the atmosphere of the city appealed to him, and he resolved to move there.
In 1992 he drove cross-country to San Francisco. He trailed at almost every restaurant in the city before settling at one of the city’s early fusion restaurant, Café Katie. . His next position was opening a restaurant with Laurence Vito who at the time was a spokesperson of Californian cuisine. His position was chef de partie and then became friends with a cook who would later become significant in his life - Patricia Yeo. After nine months Maffeo left to become chef de cuisine at Inn at the Opera, where he stayed for three fruitful years during witch he received “three stars” from the San Francisco Chronicle.
Although he loved San Francisco, he began to miss his East Coast, in 1996 Maffeo moved back to Boston and he was wooed by his childhood friend Tony Susi to join him as co-executive chef in his new venture – Sage. The restaurant, located in the city’s famous Italian haven, the North End, was instantly a critical success. For the next few years they changed the entire mentality of how the neighborhood ate, bringing a new standard of cooking to Boston’s North End. Restaurant goers loved dishes such as Poached Foie Gras in Sauternes with Prickly Pear Syrup and Braised beef cheeks Maltagliati “Crazy Cut” Pasta. Maffeo was even asked to address a class at nearby Radcliff on the restaurant’s behalf.
Then, Maffeo received the phone call that would send him to Manhattan,. Long time friend and colleague Patricia Yeo offered him the Chef De Cuisine, at her first restaurant, AZ. With Maffeo’ s help, AZ ultimately earned three stars from The New York Times, Crain’s New York Business, The New York Observer and citysearch.com. He was then promoted to Co-Executive Chef at Yeo’s venture, Pazo (106 East 57th Street, a restaurant serving new Mediterranean cuisine. Since Pazo’s opening in August 2002, Pazo has earned critical raves Crain’s New York Business 3 stars for Maffeo inventive menu. Eric Asimov (New York Times) praised his “unfettered approach, which makes Mediterranean cuisine appear “new and exciting, full of wonderful ingredients and flavor combinations”. In the autumn of 2003, Maffeo was tapped by Louis Boston’s owner Debi Greenberg to help revamp her restaurant (formerly Café Louis) at her acclaimed shopping destination. In January 2004, Restaurant L was born. Restaurant L has won numerous awards in less than a year and a half. Robb Report picked Restaurant L as one of eight of the best restaurants in the world, best of issue 2004, Bon Appetite Restaurant L is one of the best new restaurants of the year. John Mariani of Esquire Magazine voted Restaurant L as one of the best new restaurants in the US. Travel and Leisure voted Restaurant L as one of the best new restaurant in America. MSN.COM voted Restaurant L as one of the top ten restaurants in the country. Pino was also awarded best new faces Boston globe magazine 2005 .Boston magazine name him best chef up and coming 2005. Pino also made front covers of Art culinary magazine fall 2005, WHERE magazine, SANTE, magazine, and FOOD and WINE best new chef 2006. Also featured in men’s health, the Today Show, Good Morning America, Food Network, Martha Steward Radio. pbs Simply Ming. Maffeo continues to set the bar on modern food in America.
