Go west, young chefs

Lately, the culinary winds seem to be blowing from east to west.

Three New York chefs -- Daniel Boulud, Jean-Georges Vongerichten and Tom Colicchio -- have been in talks to open restaurants in Los Angeles, specifically in the Argyle Hotel, in the space that’s currently home to Fenix. Colicchio, chef-owner of the steakhouse Craft, has prevailed, though he is still in negotiations.

The trend started in March, when Norman Van Aken, who has long reigned as one of Florida’s star chefs, opened Norman’s on Sunset Strip. Here, Los Angeles diners are getting a taste of Van Aken’s distinct brand of New World cooking with dishes like piquillo flan, conch chowder and rum- and pepper-painted fish, though Van Aken isn’t necessarily doing the cooking himself.

And two well-regarded New York chefs, Michael Otsuka, who cooked at Thalia for several years, and his wife Diane Forley, the chef-owner at Verbena during its nearly 10-year successful run, have arrived at the Ojai Valley Inn & Spa, which is in the final stages of an extensive renovation. Otsuka will be responsible for the various restaurant outlets, including the Oak Grill, which is expected to open in late July. Forley’s initial focus will be the inn’s garden, where she will be helping to develop a culinary herb labyrinth. She will also be creating menus for warm-weather garden dinners and, eventually, teaching cooking classes, all on a part-time consultant basis.

For Otsuka, the move is something of a homecoming. He grew up in Pasadena and did stints at several Patina Group restaurants, including the group’s namesake dining room, where he was executive chef. Forley, on the other hand, is a New York girl through and through. But, she says, “L.A. has been getting a lot of good press lately. There’s definitely a buzz about new openings and chefs coming out of L.A. It’s always been New York, New York, New York and San Francisco, I would say. L.A. has always been known as a big urban city with good food, but not to compete with New York. But I think it is now.”

Colicchio concurs. “I think L.A. is going to be a good place for us to be,” he says, citing the large L.A.-based clientele at Craft’s Las Vegas branch, along with “a pretty good L.A. clientele at Craft in New York.” In addition, Colicchio has been buyingproduce from the Santa Monica farmers market for both his Las Vegas and New York restaurants. Why not go to the source?

“It all started to make sense,” says Colicchio. “Mainly I think Craft can do well in a few places, and L.A. was calling.” There is one other thing that fanned Colicchio’s interest. “I’m actually a Laker fan,” he says.

-- Leslee Komaiko

Small bites

* Piccolo Cipriani has opened in the former 5 Dudley space in Venice. The chef, Antonio Mure, has cooked at a number of Los Angeles’ top Italian eateries, including Il Moro and Locanda Veneta. Most recently, Mure was at Valentino in the Venetian Hotel in Las Vegas. “I stick with very old recipes,” says Mure, citing traditional Cortinese red beet-stuffed pasta with poppy seeds, brown butter and Parmesan cheese. Those who bemoaned the lack of alcohol during 5 Dudley’s final months can raise a glass; wine and beer are served here.

Piccolo Cipriani, 5 Dudley Ave., Venice, (310) 314-3222.

* L’Orangerie has a new pastry chef, Christophe Grilo. Recently arrived from France, Grilo was head pastry chef at the Michelin three-star Le Jardin des Sens in Montpellier and has done stints at several Michelin-starred restaurants in France. The restaurant has also introduced a bar menu that includes a $29 sampler plate featuring an egg in its shell topped with sevruga caviar; house smoked salmon and decadent potatoes with creme fraiche and chives.

L’Orangerie, 903 North La Cienega Blvd., West Hollywood, (310) 652-9770.