Orlando J. Soto

Orlando J. Soto


Executive Pastry Chef at Le Bernardin


I find inspiration everywhere; sometimes walking around and looking at people's reactions to things like coffee and pastries in the morning. On the same walks, I'll see buildings or art exhibits. Different perspectives bring different ways of appreciating the "day-to-day" stuff. I am very fortunate to be alive and to do what I love – so it's hard not to be inspired.


EXPERIENCE
EDUCATION
To avoid burnout, I check-in with myself weekly – "Am I good to keep pushing?” “Can I push harder or should I take a minute first?" It's tricky with Covid, call-outs, and the needs of the industry in general, right now. So, a constant check-in with myself makes it more likely for me to check-in with others for the same. Sometimes, I can lean on my team to help me take some time off – I am grateful for that.
I listen to "On The Pass" from the same people that have "The Art of Plating" on Instagram. I find it fun and informative – especially about things that are not on my immediate radar, but still in food and business. Pretty cool stuff!
I don't rush my cup of coffee at home in the morning. I will rush through everything else, and I mean everything, except those sips while the TV is on for white noise. It's a "self-reset" if you will.
I love what I do and so far it's been difficult to find a healthy work/life balance. Especially post-Covid with the shortage of cooks/pastry people in the city. I am fortunate that Le Bernardin is closed on Sundays and Chef José Almonte covers me when I need to get something life-wise done in the morning/afternoon. We find a way to make it work.
I use cloud-based technology, both on Apple and Windows to sync a lot of my work - recipes, schedules, order sheets, etc.
We chefs live in a constant state of making metaphoric lemonade. A sweeter memory comes from one New Year's Eve service, a while back. Family meal was less than average and I noticed no one really finished their meal, so we were all hungry and very tired from peak season workdays. It was 5pm and we had at least 7 more hours of work left. I asked everyone to think of a food they could whip up in 20 minutes or less. I defaulted to white rice and beans. One cook roasted cauliflower, the other an all-green salad and my sous made a frittata. It was the most mismatched assortment of food, but our bellies were full and we welcomed the new year with the right mindset.
Lead with empathy. Asking and taking little steps to show others you care often makes others care for those around them. It's the coolest behavioral effect to behold – the one of caring whether someone is OK or not, and it influences the way everything is done. Food is just food, if not done with care. Same goes for a team.
Coming back from full-city quarantine and reopening a restaurant under the pressure and risks of an ongoing pandemic could only be accomplished as part of a team. My core team came back without hesitation – and that hit me very hard, because I was having second thoughts about continuing in pastry or moving on from the restaurant world, maybe moving from NYC altogether. I couldn't reopen and I couldn't just reset and rekindle my ambitions, were it not for the people that showed up to work those days. I am very grateful for that.
My list of must-read books is long, but "The Last Course" from Claudia Fleming is at the top. There's deep knowledge of flavor development and the seasonality behind it. It's a simple, effective approach to executing pastry techniques that make sense for the ingredients/composed dish in question. This depth is not obvious at first glance, but cook from it, read the notes from chef, and it will start clicking. It will open the world for you. She has a very inspiring story, too... she's amazing.
On the physiological end, I need coffee to get me through the day. I don't mean this in the way of caffeine alone, though that's a big part. Black, no sugar – the bitterness is something I appreciate a lot and the aroma resets my ability to smell and taste sweet things.
I stay up-to-date by reading, watching videos – even TikTok. (The things people come up with!) Yet, I always bear in mind that "just because you can, doesn't mean you should."
Over the years, I've learned that pastry - and professional cooking in general, really - is as much about technique, skill and ambition, as it is about its people. The best recipes, ingredients and equipment mean nothing without the right team. So, building that team comes first and keeping that team engaged and moving forward is the biggest, but most rewarding challenge in the long-run.
We have a very short time on Earth, so if we are going to do something, we better do it well and have the most fun while we are at it. This finite amount of time motivates me every day.
My science background has allowed me to answer the "why's" and "how's" with a bit more depth than just "that's how it works" or "because that's how it's done". I often show what happens when you don't do it a certain way and explain the results and if there's a way to fix it. There's value in making mistakes – growing from them.
Keeping the team engaged is a constant balancing act. These are challenging times for the world, so extra care is given on the interpersonal side; meaning it's ok to come into work feeling bummed about stuff going on outside. I am here to listen and we can talk about it while we set up the station. Let work help you get your mind on something else and you will grow from that.
Time-management and prioritizing – all jobs have these skills to some degree. Show me you’ve got a sense of time and purpose and I will make sure you make the most of it.
Know how to measure and respect the "how" of things working - this is enough to get you far.
As far as skills go: If you know how to use a scale and respect the precision of pastry, then you're good to start! Attitude is more important - I can't teach you to have a growth mindset or to be empathetic, not immediately, anyway. So, having a positive, "can-do" attitude is more important to me, than having a lot of experience and/or skills under your belt.
Everyone brings something different to the table. A different personality or a different way of tackling a list. These differences often balance the team dynamic, even if at first it shocks team members. Representation matters in all senses of the word – culture, race, gender, preference, etc. We speak through technique, precision and our love of food, so our language is universal.
Show up early, stay until the team is good. Showing up early means putting out fires before they even happen, leaving when the team is good means you care enough to make sure everyone is OK to finish. As a cook, showing up early often gave me 1-1 time with the senior cooks/chefs where I learned more than I would during the normal hourly hustle. Leaving when the team was in a good place showed my bosses I was reliable and was willing to put in the work to get ahead.
I moved states and switched careers for pastry, but my first real "this clicks, it's it" moment was in January 2014. I had just moved to NYC and was about three weeks out from starting the pastry program at ICE. I used some of the credits of my program to take a three-hour class on Asian-Inspired Desserts with Chef Michael Laiskonis. For one thing, sitting right next to me was none other than Chef Gabrielle Hamilton. It was just four to five of us there to take a class from this brilliant chef. It felt like it was the place to be.
All of my jobs have impacted my career in different ways. I like to think that each job prepared me for the one that came next. I learned a lot about volume production/service at my last two jobs, while I took in more about high-level pastry at Per Se and Dinex.
Great advice that I received from Chef Elwyn Boyles at Per Se which still resonates with me today:(1) "Avoid Locker Room Chatter." (2) "Move with a sense of urgency, but also with a sense of purpose." And from Chef Michael Laiskonis, who told me: "Just because you can, doesn't mean you should."

Disclaimer: Individuals featured in the Inspirational Career Timelines section have been nominated by peers, colleagues and/or other members of the hospitality industry. It is to the best of our knowledge that each individual has demonstrated leadership and acted as a positive role model for others.


Send Us Your Nominations

If you know of any extraordinary food, beverage and hospitality professionals who inspire others through their hard work and leadership, nominate them now!


Nominate

Search industry jobs here


Get Inspired by Industry Leaders

Explore their unique career timelines and advice about what they’ve learned along the way

Discover more about Hospitality Careers


Categories
Culinary
Pastry & Baking
Wine & Beverage
Service
Office & Admin
Media
Experience
Career Changer
International Experience
James Beard Award