Welcome In: Chef Adam Korbel, Executive Chef at the NOPSI Hotel
Executive Chef Adam Korbel of the NOPSI Hotel, New Orleans
'Welcome In' is part of a regular series of interviews, to meet the people working behind the scenes in the New Orleans hospitality industry.
Out All Day: Hi Chef! Could you quickly introduce yourself? Where do you work/what's your position or title and how long have you been there?
Chef Adam Korbel: I'm Chef Adam Korbel, and I’m the Executive Chef at the NOPSI hotel.
What kind of cuisine do you serve? Would you say there's a philosophy or concept behind the restaurant?
It’s a blend of Creole and Cajun.
What are your earliest memories of making meals or being around food being prepared?
Back in my grandparents' kitchen with my grandfather. Making the same kind of food!
Was there a decisive moment that made you think: "I can go professional!"?
Well, I've always loved cooking with my family members. In college, I was injured playing football, so the next step for me was cooking, and I went to culinary school.
Where did you learn your trade? Who were your early inspirations or mentors?
I've worked at several places in the city. My first job after culinary school was with Arnaud’s restaurant in the French Quarter. I've had several chefs that I consider mentors. Kevin Davis was the chef at Arnaud’s. I worked with Chef Leon West at the convention center and he taught me a lot about cooking for massive groups, the ordering and the logistics. He was one of the most respected chefs in the city. He sadly passed away a few years ago, but he still has a big influence on a lot of people.
Tell us about your first time being a Head Chef, how were you feeling?
The first place I was an Executive Chef in New Orleans was at a hotel that’s no longer there, called the Chateau Sonesta. I came back to the city to work there right after Katrina, and it was an interesting experience comparing how it was before to what it was after.
What's the most experimental dish you've ever put on a menu? What's the weirdest thing you've ever tasted?
The strangest thing I've ever eaten in my professional life was chicken foot soup in a Chinese restaurant that I went to. It actually wasn't bad, but it was just strange. The most experimental thing I've ever put on a menu would be desserts where we used liquid nitrogen.
Time to name some names. Where do you like to go for fancy feasts, casual spots, cocktails or a post-shift beer or wind down?
For a dive bar, it has to be Snake and Jake's, or Snake and Jake's Christmas Club as it’s called. Clancy’s is my favorite restaurant. For cocktails, I love going to the Carousel Bar. I'd like the NOPSI bar to be as popular as the Carousel Bar! For casual places, the original Mr. Eds in Metairie.
How would you say the New Orleans culinary scene has changed in the twenty years that you've been working as a professional chef?
It’s changed quite a bit. You've gone from the originators of everything, from the Emeril’s, to people of my generation, and people who are a little younger than me. Everybody puts their own spin on things now, taking traditional dishes and expanding on them. Now you take Eggs Benedict, for instance, and make it a Cochon de lait Benedict. That’s how people think nowadays.
What are your favorite food cities outside of New Orleans?
I was in New York for a little while, I found the food there very nice. Arizona had some very good restaurants and Chicago was wonderful. I’ve been all around the country, and I think that the whole food scene has got to the point that wherever you go now, you can find good food.
How do you relax apart from getting as much sleep as possible?
I have a brand new chocolate labrador retriever that I love to train. We’re getting ready for duck hunting season. So, hunting and fishing, whenever I can get a line in the water!
OK, leave us with some wisdom - one piece of cuisine-related advice.
I’d just say that anybody who is going to come into the culinary world: you have to love it, to see yourself doing this every day. Because if you don't love it, you will hate it. The demanding hours, the stress levels…you really need to love it in order to do it.
Thank you so much for your time, Chef Adam!
Dining options at the NOPSI hotel include Public Service and Above the Grid. Details, opening hours and menus can be found via the hotel's website - click here for more information
WELCOME IN: Maggie Scales, La Boulangerie and Link Restaurant Group
WELCOME IN: Amarys and Jordan Herndon, Palm&Pine
Out All Day: Hi Chef! Could you quickly introduce yourself? Where do you work/what's your position or title and how long have you been there?
Chef Adam Korbel: I'm Chef Adam Korbel, and I’m the Executive Chef at the NOPSI hotel.
What kind of cuisine do you serve? Would you say there's a philosophy or concept behind the restaurant?
It’s a blend of Creole and Cajun.
What are your earliest memories of making meals or being around food being prepared?
Back in my grandparents' kitchen with my grandfather. Making the same kind of food!
Was there a decisive moment that made you think: "I can go professional!"?
Well, I've always loved cooking with my family members. In college, I was injured playing football, so the next step for me was cooking, and I went to culinary school.
Where did you learn your trade? Who were your early inspirations or mentors?
I've worked at several places in the city. My first job after culinary school was with Arnaud’s restaurant in the French Quarter. I've had several chefs that I consider mentors. Kevin Davis was the chef at Arnaud’s. I worked with Chef Leon West at the convention center and he taught me a lot about cooking for massive groups, the ordering and the logistics. He was one of the most respected chefs in the city. He sadly passed away a few years ago, but he still has a big influence on a lot of people.
Tell us about your first time being a Head Chef, how were you feeling?
The first place I was an Executive Chef in New Orleans was at a hotel that’s no longer there, called the Chateau Sonesta. I came back to the city to work there right after Katrina, and it was an interesting experience comparing how it was before to what it was after.
What's the most experimental dish you've ever put on a menu? What's the weirdest thing you've ever tasted?
The strangest thing I've ever eaten in my professional life was chicken foot soup in a Chinese restaurant that I went to. It actually wasn't bad, but it was just strange. The most experimental thing I've ever put on a menu would be desserts where we used liquid nitrogen.
Time to name some names. Where do you like to go for fancy feasts, casual spots, cocktails or a post-shift beer or wind down?
For a dive bar, it has to be Snake and Jake's, or Snake and Jake's Christmas Club as it’s called. Clancy’s is my favorite restaurant. For cocktails, I love going to the Carousel Bar. I'd like the NOPSI bar to be as popular as the Carousel Bar! For casual places, the original Mr. Eds in Metairie.
How would you say the New Orleans culinary scene has changed in the twenty years that you've been working as a professional chef?
It’s changed quite a bit. You've gone from the originators of everything, from the Emeril’s, to people of my generation, and people who are a little younger than me. Everybody puts their own spin on things now, taking traditional dishes and expanding on them. Now you take Eggs Benedict, for instance, and make it a Cochon de lait Benedict. That’s how people think nowadays.
What are your favorite food cities outside of New Orleans?
I was in New York for a little while, I found the food there very nice. Arizona had some very good restaurants and Chicago was wonderful. I’ve been all around the country, and I think that the whole food scene has got to the point that wherever you go now, you can find good food.
How do you relax apart from getting as much sleep as possible?
I have a brand new chocolate labrador retriever that I love to train. We’re getting ready for duck hunting season. So, hunting and fishing, whenever I can get a line in the water!
OK, leave us with some wisdom - one piece of cuisine-related advice.
I’d just say that anybody who is going to come into the culinary world: you have to love it, to see yourself doing this every day. Because if you don't love it, you will hate it. The demanding hours, the stress levels…you really need to love it in order to do it.
Thank you so much for your time, Chef Adam!
Dining options at the NOPSI hotel include Public Service and Above the Grid. Details, opening hours and menus can be found via the hotel's website - click here for more information
WELCOME IN: Maggie Scales, La Boulangerie and Link Restaurant Group
WELCOME IN: Amarys and Jordan Herndon, Palm&Pine