Name(s) and Title(s):

Prezo Grille & Bar Executive Chef Tim Vaillette and General Manager Jessica Hall

When did you know you wanted to be cooking?

Vaillette: I knew when I was 13. My grandmother got me a job at Monty's Garden in Leominster, my hometown, as a dishwasher. I worked there through high school. I moved up to prep and then line cook.

Career timeline:

Vaillette: I attended Johnson & Wales and graduated in 1992 and then got a job at the Sole Proprietor in Worcester. I was there for nine years and then moved on to become the sous chef at 111 Chop House, on Shrewsbury Street in Worcester.  I went to Peppercorn's in Worcester in 2001, and that's how I met the Oliveri family. They came in and asked me to cook them something as sort of an audition for this position at Prezo's.

Hall: I was a waitress at the Peppercorn's in Worcester in 2002 and in 2005, when Prezo's opened, I came and trained new employees. But my management experience came when I filled in for a Peppercorn's manager who went out on maternity leave. Then I was offered the position here in 2008.

Three ingredients you can't live without:

Salt, pepper and fresh herbs (especially rosemary).

Food flop:

We come up with a lot of interesting pizza combinations and a while back we had a "Steak Bomb Pizza." As you can imagine, it was like a steak bomb, including mayo and ketchup. I think we sold maybe one or two of those a month; we didn't keep it on the menu very long.

Best thing you ever ate:

Vaillette: My wife and I went to Luciano's Restaurant in Wrentham for our first anniversary in 2007 and I ate the best veal chop I've ever had. I could eat it every day. It was huge and cooked perfectly. It had this exquisite sauce. Unbelieveable.

Hall: The chicken florentine here at Prezo's. I always recommend it to customers and tell them it's the reason I keep Weight Watchers' number on hand.

What do you cook at home?

Vaillette: My wife's a vegetarian so I cook a lot of that at home. And this time of year, I make a lot of pasta and bean soups. I will also keep grilling outside through the winter, even if there's two feet of snow on the ground.

Hall: Well, I'm engaged to the sous chef at Peppercorn's, so, I don't cook anything.

Five words to describe your food:

Tasty, unique, plentiful, attractive, rich.

#1 cooking tip:

Take your time, don't rush, and taste it along the way.

Recipe for Seafood Risotto

(Was it the fact that this writer mentioned at least a dozen times that this is my favorite thing to eat there- along with their delicious sushi? Thank you, chef.)

4 sea scallops

4 jumbo shrimp

2 0z fresh lobster meat

4 0z seafood stock

2 oz heavy cream

2 cups cooked risotto

1 oz shaved asiago cheese

chopped parsley

salt and pepper to taste

In a saute pan with olive oil, saute the seafood dredged in seasoned flour over medium heat. Cook about 4 minutes on each side. Add the fresh lobster meat, seafood stock, heavy cream and the cooked risotto. Reduce to low heat and stir in the risotto. When liquid in cooked in, garnish it with shaved asiago cheese and chopped parsley. Always season with salt and pepper to taste!  ENJOY!