Sirio Maccioni, the man who brought fine dining to Las Vegas 162m2o

Sirio Maccioni is considered one of the greatest restaurateurs (restaurant owners) in modern American history. His contribution to bringing French and Italian cuisine to the highest standards in New York and Las Vegas is immense. Even after his death in April 2020, those he trained in his restaurants and the chefs he launched carry on an impeccable culinary legacy. 65633

Sirio Maccioni 3t2d5m

The early years. Le Cirque New York. 6j1510

Born in 1932 in Montecatini Terme, Italy, Maccioni was born into an authentic Italian family, with the sweet sauce of pasta sauce coursing through his veins since childhood. After World War II, he went to work in various French restaurants in Europe and on the Home Lines cruise ship Atlantic, which took him to ports such as Nassau, Port-au-Prince, Havana and New York, where he disembarked in 1956, penniless, to continue his career in America.

After emigrating to the United States, his ion for the culinary arts led him to work as a chef at The Colony restaurant in New York while studying at Hunter College. The Colony in New York, a meeting place for New York’s high society of the time, was where he gained the trust of the wealthy clientele who came here and where he acquired the knowledge he would later use in his career.

Sirio developed his skills in the restaurant business and loved the New York restaurant atmosphere. There was only one step left before he was on his feet. So, in 1974, Sirio opened what was destined to become a New York landmark – Le Cirque, which literally translates to “the circus” in French, at the Mayfair Hotel.

Le Cirque attracted celebrity chefs such as Geoffrey Zakarian, David Bouley, Jacque Torres and Daniel Boulud, who ran the kitchen for six years between 1986 and 1992. The high-class restaurant was recognized not only for its food, but also for the many celebrities who ed through its doors. Political and social personalities including Richard Nixon, Bill Clinton, Nancy and Ronald Reagan, Diana Ross, Princess Grace and Frank Sinatra frequented Le Cirque.

In 1997, Le Cirque outgrew its original location and moved to a larger space in the New York Palace Hotel as Le Cirque 2000. By 2004, Le Cirque had become a New York City landmark and decided to move to the prestigious Bloomberg Building on East 58th Street where it opened its doors in May 2006.

In its 40 years of existence, Le Cirque New York has been an outstanding example of culinary artistry. Fashion and sophistication. In every location Le Cirque has had throughout its history, guests could enjoy a modern, circus-themed dining room where food was elevated to an art form.

Sirio Maccioni and coming to Las Vegas 1gah

It wasn’t for the first time that Vegas business people were looking to the East Coast to bring the best in dining or event planning to their city. So it wasn’t long and during the golden age of Vegas casinos, when many of the city’s iconic new locations were being built, the corporate heads who ran the casinos decided to turn their city into a culinary destination as well, and not just for gaming and entertainment.

In 1998 Sirio opened Osteria del Circo (Tuscan cuisine) and Le Cirque (French cuisine) in the Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas, and in 2009 he and his sons opened their third Las Vegas restaurant, Sirio Ristorante, at the Aria Resort and Casino.

Rated AAA Five Diamond AAA Five Diamond Le Cirque Bellagio speaks eloquently of French cuisine – refined, bold, transcendent, all in a spectacular, cheerful, brightly colored setting that adorns this famous venue overlooking the famous Bellagio fountains.

Both Circo and Sirio closed in 2014, but Le Cirque Bellagio continues to operate today.

Sirio Maccioni’s culinary heritage 2j4zg

It is said that the two main dishes that Sirio promoted heavily during his career were pasta primavera and creme brulee (creme brulee), two dishes that became very popularized thanks to him. Maccioni’s arrival in Vegas represents the beginning of Las Vegas becoming the gastronomic landmark and culinary destination as the city is known today, more than just a casino and entertainment town.

<<Sirio was the embodiment of uniqueness, leaving behind an extraordinary legacy in the world of hospitality and gastronomy that will live on forever.

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Sources: Wikipedia, lecirque.com, people.com, vegas.eater.com, cuisineist.com, forbes.com