Steve Benjamin

Steve Benjamin

Steve Benjamin
Executive Chef, Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills

Steve Benjamin was born in Paris where his initial passion for cooking was ignited by morning visits to the farmers’ market with his father. Although he was not a professional chef, Benjamin’s father loved to entertain and often hosted dinner parties, using the items purchased at the farmers’ market to create delicious cuisine for invited guests.  Inspired by the fresh produce and his father’s passion for cooking, a young Benjamin began to imagine all of the dishes he could create.

At only 14-years-old, Benjamin began volunteering as an apprentice at a local restaurant near his hometown. Encouraged by his father, he went on to study French cuisine at Chambre du Commerce du Val d’Oise, where the promising chef ultimately earned two culinary degrees. While in school, he worked in the kitchens of Le Cabouillet and the Paris International Golf Club gaining experience as the master chef, which included managing the meat and fish stations as well as the pâtisserie. He later worked at Le Celadon, les Beatille, both of which are Michelin-starred restaurants.

After serving in the French military as a private chef for the Division General, Benjamin held consecutive Chef de Partie and Maitre Saucier positions at Les Béatilles, Drouant and Le Relais Sevres, all Michelin-starred restaurants.

In 2002, Benjamin served as sous chef at the Astor Hotel in Paris where he was skillfully trained by “Chef of the Century” Joël Robuchon. In 2003, Robuchon recruited him to open L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon in Paris.

In 2005, Benjamin moved to Las Vegas to open L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon at MGM Grand as Executive Chef.

Benjamin enjoys experimenting with the finest ingredients to create new dishes and sharing his knowledge by mentoring young chefs.  Having received a coveted Michelin Star rating for his efforts in Las Vegas, Chef Benjamin’s culinary prowess has granted him a large local following within the Las Vegas locale, leading to his recently win on Chopped! on the Food Network.  Chef Benajmin joined the Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills team in 2017 where he serves as Executive Chef and works alongside chef Jean-Georges Vongrichten to oversee all food and beverage throughout the five-star hotel including the day-to-day operations at Jean-Georges Beverly Hills and The Rooftop by JG.