From a Hamlet to Hollywood: Wolfgang Puck’s Unstoppable Journey

At age 14, a country boy left an abusive home to take a job peeling potatoes in a nearby restaurant. Two decades later he was a legendary chef, restaurateur, and caterer to the stars in Hollywood.

Wolfgang Puck shares his extraordinary journey on Rodeo Drive: The Podcast, Season Four, in a conversation with Lyn Winter.

Born in a rural village in Austria, Puck set off on his own after middle school and worked his way to the top of fine dining in Provence, Paris and Monte Carlo before arriving in Los Angeles, where he transformed Ma Maison and then launched the game-changing Spago in West Hollywood and then Beverly Hills, followed by Chinois On Main, and now CUT by Wolfgang Puck Restaurant and Lounge at the Beverly Wilshire, A Four Seasons Hotel.

Along the way, he invented the open kitchen, introduced Asian fusion, elevated farm-to-table produce and became the caterer for the Oscars. Now his empire spans more than 27 restaurants around the globe, cookware, wine and coffee lines, best selling cookbooks and a documentary film. He has a star on Hollywood Boulevard, a character based on him in an animated TV show, and is studying at Harvard.

Puck talks about the twists and turns on his path to success, including the challenges of seating the stars in the most popular restaurant in town. He recalls feeding Lionel Ritchie and Jimmy Connors on the staircase, creating smoked salmon pizza for Joan Collins, and sealing the deal to cater the Academy Awards.

“I said, ‘I don't tell you how to make the movie, you don't tell me what to cook,’ and that was it. And they said, okay, and they were happy because they didn't have to choose. Before they used to get into fights; one wanted chicken, one wanted fish, one wanted steak, and so forth.”

He recollects the violence in his life, first from a terrible stepfather and then in the kitchens of his early days. “It used to be totally, totally crazy in the kitchens, you know. And for what? … But normally, if they mess up something, I just show them how to do it the right way, right. It's easier than yelling at them.”

And he expresses the joy of foraging for fresh vegetables, dating back to his childhood with his beloved mother, also a cook. 

“If you ask me, ‘what do you prefer, going shopping at Neiman Marcus or to the farmers market’? There is no doubt that we'll go to the farmers market. So for me, our cooking is all about the ingredients. If we get the best ingredients and then we don’t mess them up we're going to have good food.”

Finally, Puck talks about bringing in the next generation and his son Byron, even though he has no plans to stop working himself, “I get excited about everything…to me, continuing doing what you love to do and when you're passionate about it, that's what life is all about.”

Season Four of Rodeo Drive – The Podcast is presented by the Rodeo Drive Committee with the support of The Hayman Family, Beverly Wilshire, A Four Seasons Hotel, and the Beverly Hills Conference & Visitors Bureau.

Season Four Credits:

Executive Producer and Host: Lyn Winter

On behalf of the Rodeo Drive Committee: Kathy Gohari

Scriptwriter and Editorial Advisor: Frances Anderton

Editor: Hans Fjellestad

Theme music by Brian Banks

Production Assistant: Isabelle Alfonso.

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