LORENZO SOLLECITO
Dazzled by the beautiful creations found in La Patisserie at the Four Seasons Hotel Jakarta, Exquisite Taste sat down with Chef Lorenzo to find out about his sugary touch.
Inspired by baking apple strudel and biscuits with his grandmother as a 5-year-old, Lorenzo Sollecito chose to become a chef, and has worked in several European hotels and restaurants. His culinary path changed, however, when he met his mentor, Executive Pastry Chef Domenico di Clemente at the two Michelin-starred Il Palagio at Four Seasons Hotel Firenze. Now Executive Pastry Chef at Four Seasons Hotel Jakarta, Lorenzo crafts innovative, artistic creations that delight and captivate the senses, from bespoke cakes to chocolate bonbons.
Holding firm to the philosophy, “Nothing should go in front of a guest if we don't love it ourselves,” Lorenzo was one of a select few chefs invited to take part in the highly renowned Four Seasons Pop Down in Philadelphia, an innovative global series brought to life by a selected team of Four Seasons artists and visionaries from around the world. He will also attend the Pop Down in Hong Kong in March 2019.
: Your creations are gorgeous, both to eat and to look at, this is clearly your passion. What first attracted you to becoming a pastry chef?
Lorenzo Sollecito: My career started in a bit of a weird way. Before I moved to the pastry side, I was working in the hot kitchen. I decided to see what it would be like in the pastry kitchen when I was offered a six-month stint in the Four Seasons Hotel Firenze and everything changed. It's totally another world, but I'm very glad that I made that choice.
: You’ve mentioned pastry is a science; how is it different from cooking nonpastry dishes?
L: With pastry you have to plan and be precise with everything and you can't make any mistakes. For savoury dishes, guests mainly remember the flavours, while for sweet dishes, it has to be a gorgeous piece of art as well as tasting beautiful, otherwise you disappoint the guests.
: What is your favourite sweet dish to eat? L: I work long days with desserts, so when I go out I don't want to see any! When I'm working I'm super picky, super stressful, super demanding – the classic chef – but out of my jacket, I'm easy going, so if I do eat something sweet it has to be very easy, an apple crumble or strudel, something that reminds me of home.
: Where do you find your inspiration? L: It's easy to find inspiration these days with the TV, internet and social media. For pastry our creations are often either theme based – like Valentine's Day, Christmas
– or based on seasons or flavours. For example in apple season I look for an attractive combination of flavours that places apples at the forefront.
E: What is your favourite feature of La Patisserie?
L: I really love working with chocolate and I've created an exclusive selection of bonbons for La Patisserie that offer a combination of flavours for her and for him. They make perfect gifts and chocolate is definitely what I have the most fun working with.
Four Seasons Hotel Jakarta