Wolfgang Puck has cooked for some of the biggest events in the world, including 25 years as the head chef for the Governor’s Ball at the Academy Awards.
So it’s no surprise that planning and cooking for a soiree like the Super Bowl 53 Host Committee Media Party at the Georgia Aquarium is second nature to Puck.
But that isn’t to say he doesn’t still love what he does -- far from it.
“I’m still passionate about food, I’m passionate about restaurants and people,” Puck told the AJC as he was preparing for the event. “I’m doing it for 50 years or more, bit I still like it just like I did 20, 30, 40 years ago.”
The celebrity chef -- who is the exclusive caterer for the aquarium -- flew in more than 15 chefs from his restaurants around the country to help execute Tuesday night’s menu.
Wanting to showcase Atlanta cuisine beyond Southern food, Puck created stations serving food inspired by India (chicken tikka masala), Mexico (veggie and fish tacos), Italy (truffle and mushroom pasta), China (Peking duck bao) and France (dessert crepes), plus a “Wolfgang Puck Classic” station featuring short ribs and pommes aligot.
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Ordering ingredients for thousands of guests is no small feat. The list for the duck baos, for instance, include:
•400 lbs. of local air-dried ducks
•200 lbs. of flour for the bao buns
•2 gallons of Hoisin sauce
•100 blood oranges
•4 cucumbers
Preparing the ducks is a multi-day process. On the first day the ducks are lacquered, then they’re dried for 48 hours and then roasted for six hours in convection ovens.
Want to see what else goes into putting on a successful large-scale event? Watch the video above to go behind the scenes with Puck.
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