TravelsinTaste.com recently had the distinct pleasure of chatting with Executive Chef Geno Bernardo of Nove Italiano at the Palms. We discussed with him his career, the meal he prepared for us and a variety of other fun topics -- including his famous celebrity door!
First, however, we wondered how Chef Bernardo arrived at Nove, which he describes as N9NE's sister restaurant. "I was living in San Diego and I was cooking at a sushi restaurant," Chef Bernardo began. "I had an opportunity to meet with George Maloof, Michael Morton, Scott deGraph and Michael Kornick and discuss what they were going to be doing at the Palms. Before the Palms they opened up in Palm Springs in the Morongo Casino. They opened this concept restaurant called Belly Italian. After Belly Italian opened, I opened Nove Italiano two years ago -- what N9NE is to steak, we are to Italian food -- and it's been glory in the sky ever since."