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Jeremy
Do you think the experiences of your childhood were unusual? How many people in the 50's had access to farm fresh food?

Jeremy
What was your favorite dish when you were a child? Do you serve it now in any of your restaurants?

larry forgione
When I was a child? Oh, I would think that while I was growing up desserts were my favorite things. The opposite of now. I grew up a few blocks from my Irish grandmother, who was a great baker and pie maker, and we'd go to her house after school -- and whenever you went there, there was always a fresh dessert like lemon meringue pie or chocolate cake -- the recipe for which has been on the menu of An American Place since we opened; it's a big chocolate cake, the kind you need to have a glass of milk with.

Park
(AUTOMATED MESSAGE)...Has joined the chat...

Jeremy
There has been a lot of talk about tipping lately -- have you ever thought of paying salaries to the people in the front of the house?

larry forgione
I've heard of restaurants charging service charges which are used to guarantee salary, but I don't think the public is so interested in service charges. I think Americans don't like them, they like to think that the amount of the tip is based on the service that's provided to them. So, I think that until the entire industry changes, I'm not sure, especially in New York, that people are predisposed to it.

Jeremy
What and where was the best meal you've ever had in your life?

larry forgione
The best meal? Where and what? I'm not sure I can put a finger on it. I've had so many memorable meals with so many friends. I can think of wonderful meals at Alice's, Chez Panisse in Berkeley, at Wolf's (Wolfgang Puck's Spago in LA), at Jam's on the Upper East Side, going for Jonathan's (Waxman) famous chicken and fries...I can't put a finger on the best, though.

Jeremy
How do you define "American Food"?

larry forgione
I define American food as a combination of the bounty, harvest, as we knew it and as it's evolved today -- a combination of the flavors and integrity of the past mixed with the melting pot of those settlers that came into the area. I think it's what being American is -- being part of a very large picture that can't be defined --it's made up of so many different flavors and regions and influences. There's something American in taste that comes across when you have food that's not in America -- maybe there's a flavor profile that we enjoy, maybe our flavor profile is a little more aggressive, a little more colorful, in the sense of flavors and spices.

Jeremy
What do you think of fusion? Would you define your mixing up of regional American flavors as fusion?

Shanna Kamin
What kind of research did you do before opening An American Place? Did you travel around the country trying all the regional cuisines, or did you mainly base it on your own eating and cooking experiences?

larry forgione
Before I opened An American Place, when I was at the Connaught Hotel (in London), I decided I wanted to understand American ingredients much more than I did. I started to research American ingredients by reading books and articles. I tried to find old ingredients, to see if they were still being produced, and traveled to meet with different people. I then had the great fortune of meeting and becoming friends with Jim Beard, who is certainly the most important figure in American cooking, and I feel fortunate for having the chance to spend time with him. It was Jim who named An American Place.

Jeremy
Why did you write a cookbook? Did you like it? Would you do it again?

Joshua Mack
So what's up with your next cookbook?

larry forgione
The first cookbook, An American Place cookbook, was a book I'd been working on for a long time. It's not only a compilation of recipes because it includes a little bit of a story, of the history of some of the dishes. It was important to me that the stories were told and that the recipes were explained in a way that they could be done at home -- that the story of An American Place be told through home cooks.

larry forgione
For my next cookbook I'd like to do a book on regional American cooking, breaking regions down in a very authoritative book on the different regions -- a book that could be used almost as a textbook, but also as a story book and recipe book on American food.

Jeremy
Are there any cookbooks other than your own that you would recommend highly?

larry forgione
Cookbooks I'd recommend? There are so many books that I think are wonderful -- Jasper White's New England Cookbook, all of Jim's (especially the American Cookery Book), and the Time Life books (the old series, not the new one -- if you can find them) -- they're some of my favorite old American cookbooks.

Paul Coyle
Your last cookbook was just nominated for two very prestigious awards. Do you think you'll win?

larry forgione
Do I think I'll win? I always hope that I'll win.
Joshua Mack
Are you opening your new restaurant on Wall Street because you want to feed the people who already work there or because you believe the area is reviving?

Shanna Kamin
This area desperately needs a good restaurant--there is nothing decent until TriBeCa. What made you decide to open up shop down here?

larry forgione
As for the location, I thought the concept of a chop house was perfect for the Wall Street area. I've always been drawn to locations by the water, and there are very few in Manhattan. I thought it would be a great location to do something. And, in addition to The Grill Room we're doing a place called Larry Forgione's Marketplace Express, which is a take away shop -- soup, salad, and sandwiches. Then by next spring we'll also be doing (probably) a tavern style restaurant right below The Grill Room which will have outdoor terrace seating.