PASTRY CHEF

FOUR SEASONS HOTEL LOS ANGELES

Four Seasons Los Angeles opened its doors in 1987 and in came Donald Wressell as Pastry Chef. He has not looked back only forward and in doing so has created a success story for the hotel and for the sweeter side of cooking.

Born in Issaquah, Washington, Wressell was a graduate of the Washington State Chef Association culinary program. His extensive training includes Pastry Chef at the Westin in Seattle, the Watergate Hotel in Washington D.C. and the Breakers Hotel in Long Beach, California. In 1985 Wressell joined the Four Seasons Hotel in Philadelphia as Assistant Pastry Chef before moving to Los Angeles and the Four Seasons Hotel in 1987.

Chef Wressell supervises all aspects of pastry making for the hotel’s restaurants and catering functions and manages a team of six cooks in the pastry kitchen.

Over the years Wressell has perfected the art of creating masterpieces in chocolate sculptures, pulled sugar displays and pastries. In particular as a personal tribute to the Academy Awards ceremony held in Hollywood each year, Wressell creates a chocolate sculpture of each of the movies nominated for a Best Picture Oscar. Using the freshest ingredients, Wressell’s favorite dishes include poached apple compote with vanilla cream; individual raspberry shortcakes and the ever popular chocolate pudding cake. Says Chef Wressell, “pastries are now becoming more product driven, with so many different varieties and choice.”

In 2003 Wressell was named Southern California’s Restaurant Writers Pastry Chef of the Year. He was named one of the Top Ten Pastry Chefs in America for two years in succession in 1998 and again in 1999.

The recipient of Silver and Gold medals in the Grand Salon Culinaire and the winner of second place honors in Les Master du Chocolate competition in 1995, Donald Wressell has represented the USA three times in Le Coupe du Monde de la Patisserie (the World Cup of Pastry). In 2001 as team coach and manager, he led the team to the Gold Medal. The World Cup of Pastry competition is held each January in Lyon, France; the Gold Medal win in 2001 marked the first time in the competition’s history that the Gold had been won by the USA team. In January of this year, Chef Wressell captained the American World Cup team to a 2 nd Bronze in Lyon., repeating exactly the same feat from 1995, when he also was captain of the team.

Look for him on the Food Network in both Coupe Du Monde and Pastry Team Championships.

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For further information, please contact:

Sarah Cairns

Director of Public Relations

310-786 2212

sarah.cairns@fourseasons.com