Chef Sterling Buckley spent his teenage years as a musical artist performing, writing and recording music but discovered his true passion was in the kitchen pursuing culinary artistry.
After pursuing his craft and bringing his creative takes to a variety of cuisines at some of the Las Vegas Strip’s top restaurants, for the first time in his career he has the freedom to create a menu that is 100% his own at the newly opened Palate in The Colorado building in The Arts District in Downtown Las Vegas.
Vegas Prime Magazine talked with the talented 38-year-old Le Cordon Bleu graduate to learn of his path to becoming a chef, the opening of Palate and more.
Your mother, Hazel Payne, won the Grammy Award for Best New Artist in 1979 with the group A Taste of Honey. You were on the verge of following in her footsteps and was almost a breakout singer-songwriter before becoming a chef. What led to you deciding to make culinary your career, and how did you make that happen?
Well, when I got my first taste of the restaurant industry, I instantly fell in love. I was frustrated with the fact that the music industry wanted me to be someone I was not, and at that point I was ready to move on. I made the decision to go to culinary school and get serious about food. I put my head down and worked really hard to learn whatever I could from every chef I worked with and do the things that everyone hated to do or thought was too hard.
Over your career, you’ve cooked in kitchens at top-notch eateries on The Strip such as La Cave at Wynn, Gordon Ramsay Steak at Paris and Momofuku at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas. What will be different about your new executive chef position at Palate?
Palate is where I get to absolutely be myself on a plate. When you work for celebrity chefs, sometimes you have to fit into their concept and work around the vision they set for the restaurant. Palate’s food is all my paint and canvas. The owners have allowed me to be free and have fun with the food.
You grew up with Southern influences. Are there any examples of your roots on your new menu?
Yes, I wanted to show love to the Southern table but in my special way! So, we have our biscuits of the day, which have gone from shallot confit to roasted shishito and smoked cheddar to scallion and Pecorino Romano. Also, we have our scallops and lemongrass grits with chorizo relish and shrimp sauce. And I’m making fresh jams and preserves that remind me of my grandmother sending us peach preserves during the summertime.
What are some of your favorite dishes on your menu?
You can’t pick a favorite child (laughs)! But if I had to choose, it would be the shrimp gnocchi with local Desert Moon mushrooms, chili espuma, xo-frito, lobster truffle and chicharrones, and the miso pork belly with crispy maitake mushrooms, smoked pearl onions, watermelon radish and grilled pineapple. These two dishes really explain me as a chef. | PalateLV.com
Photo by Daniel Howard.
