Nancy Silverton

Nancy Silverton, who has brought Los Angeles La Brea Bakery, Campanile, and Mozza (Osteria and Pizzeria), didn’t always know she would be a chef. Growing up in the San Fernando Valley, she said, “I wanted to be a lawyer.” It wasn’t until attending college in Northern California that she found her “love for food, eating and everything related.” Below, she discusses more of her favorites.

Q. What do you wake up to?
A. Coffee.

Q. What music have you listened to today?
A. I haven’t listened to music today but when I do, I don’t listen to contemporary music, so I’m not in the loop with all the new groups. I like the oldies but goodies, like Neil Young and Eric Clapton.

Q. What’s your favorite word?
A. Delicious.

Q. What do you find beautiful?
A. I like to find beauty in random things, whether it’s a dish or something in nature.

Q. How would you describe yourself in five words or fewer?
A. Passionate, temperamental, persistent, forgiving, obsessive.

Q. What is your favorite alcoholic beverage?
A. Red wine.

Q. What is your greatest extravagance?
A. Clothing.

Q. If you could take only one more journey, where would you go?
A. Always back to Italy.

Q. What profession would you like to practice in your next life?
A. Same one that I have in this life.

Q. What would be your death row meal?
A. A rare steak and a big glass of red wine.

Q. What is your favorite holiday and why?
A. The Fourth of July or Memorial Day, because there’s no religion behind them, and it’s just an excuse to have friends over.

Q. What is your fondest childhood memory?
A. Taking road trips with my family.

Q. What is your most prized material possession?
A. My cell phone.

Q. What promise do you make to yourself that you break the most often?
A. I think tonight I’ll stay home and read a book.

Q. What should you throw away but haven’t been able to part with?
A. Maybe my box of memories that I’ll probably never look at again.

Q. Who is the one person living or dead that you’d most love to have a beer with?
A. I have a drink always with the people I want to have a drink with, so no one comes to mind.

*Photo by Aaron Salcido.