Ma Cuisine... a retrospective of where I am at culinarily, at the moment.

1. Creative Hospitality Solutions
Chef/Food Director
Francois@deMelogue.com

2. “I’m a man of extremes. I can’t
stand things that are diluted, only
drinks benefit from that. I want 100
percent of everything, of
everybody, or nothing at all.”
~ Marco Pierre White

3. My Life, thus far…
 “There are a lot of jobs in
life, but I wonder how many
give you the chance to
express yourself like I can
here? I serve what I like,
accept the bookings I like,
hire and fire the staff I like.
My kitchen is my freedom”
 Marco Pierre White

4. Claudia Springs Winery was founded in 1989 by Bob and Claudia Klindt in the
picturesque Anderson Valley of Mendocino County, California. The Anderson Valley,
located 125 miles north of San Francisco, is one of the very best locations for
producing fine, cool climate varietals such as Pinot Noir and the white Alsace varietals.
The unique combination of warm sunny days and cool foggy nights allows the grapes
to mature slowly, developing to their full potential.

5. Sales, Marketing, Winery Chef
We produce incredible estate Pinot Noir and Pinot
Gris from vines planted by Bob and Claudia. We also
create award winning single vineyard designated
and proprietary blended Zinfandels and a limited
production Viognier from premium vineyards in the
Redwood Valley and Mendocino Ridge

6. Chef Francois & Chef Beau Mac Millian, of the
famed Sanctuary Resort in Arizona

8. “Executive Chef François de Mélogue cooks each dish to its
full potential and presents it with great allure.”
~ UR Magazine May 8th, 2003
 19.5/ 20 ~ WBBM Radio
 Three Stars ~ Tribune
 Top Ten in the World ~
Food & Wine Magazine
 Top Twenty in the US ~
Gourmet Magazine
 Best New Restaurant
2003 ~ Chicago Tribune
 3.5 Stars ~ Gay Chicago
Magazine

9. World’s Top 10 New Restaurants
~ Food & Wine September 2003

10. Chicago Sun Times 9/3/2003

11. Bon Appétit Magazine August 2003
Top Tables… Where to go now!

12. Chicago Tribune July 11th, 2003
Three Stars
“A Culinary tour of Provence,
with side trips to Morocco,
Spain and Italy, await diners at
this charming spot…”

13. Chef François de Mélogue,
39, is “well traveled, well
read with an artistic
mentality… The culinar y
vision is largely his…”
~ William Rice
Food Editor, Chicago Tribune

14. “All in all, Pili Pili was a great
success. We obviously loved the
food, but also appreciated the
chic but warm décor and the
flawless service…”
~ Rob Frisch, Gay Chicago Magazine
July 3rd, 2003

15. “De Mélogue’s fish are unfailingly impressive, whether presented
individually, as with the flawless Loup de Mer with Roasted Garlic and
Tomato Confite, or grouped together as Fideuà, a Catalan dish…
If anything, the meat dishes are better. Mechoui consists of fire-
roasted lamb shoulder with cumin, paprika and harissa and scattered
over a timbale of Israeli couscous studded with apricots and raisins…”
~ Phil Vettel, Metromix, July 1st, 2003

16. “Until very recently, Pili Pili was only a hot North
African pepper used to season cooking oils in
Provence, but on April 1st 2003 Pili Pili became the
hottest new dining spot in Chicago’s River North…
The food is vibrant, accessible and casual, yet
sophisticated thanks to the creative genius of Chef
François de Mélogue…”
~ Don Newcomb, ITLC

17. Phil Vittel, Chicago Tribune Restaurant Critic
“But if I had to pick a best new restaurant for 2003 it would be Pili Pili, a
terrific Provençal – Mediterranean restaurant with excellent food and
outstanding service.”

18. 19.5/20
“Although these artists painted on canvas
it is only fair to suggest that in restaurants
Chefs also paint, but on dinner plates. The
metaphor certainly holds true for Chef
François de Mélogue as he creates the
various presentations that make up the
Pili Pili menu.”
Sherman Kaplan, Restaurant Critic WBBM

19. Pat Bruno, Chicago Sun Times
July 11th, 2003
“This place is Mediterranean to the core. Carving
a swath through France, Italy, Portugal and
Morocco, it has a lot going on. The range of
dishes is creative, interesting and exciting”

26. Joel Robuchon Gastronomie
Stage d’Observation
 The highlight of my
time at Old Drovers
Inn had to be getting a
chance to do a stage
for Joel Robuchon at
his three star Michelin
restaurant in Paris,
France. It was an eye
opening experience
beyond words...

27. Joel Robuchon
 “Today’s cuisine might be
called a cuisine actuelle, a
cooking in which we
rediscover the savors,
flavors, tastes, of an
ingredient… As cooks, we
have the right to enhance
or heighten flavors, but we
do not have the right to
destroy them.”

34. “At the end of the day, it’s just
food, isn’t it? Just food.”
~ Marco Pierre White