Celeste Fierro
Native New Yorker Celeste Fierro has worked in the hospitality industry for more than ten years. In 2004, she opened ONE Little West 12—now the new home of Bagatelle—with her business partner in Manhattan’s Meatpacking District. The success of ONE led to the creation and opening of her second Meatpacking restaurant, STK, a steakhouse geared toward women, which was up until this point a concept void in the hospitality scene. As the restaurants began to multiply beyond the two in Meatpacking, new concepts developed and Fierro’s empire grew to include locations in L.A., Miami, Las Vegas, and Turks and Caicos within a few short years. Today, Fierro holds the title of senior vice president for The ONE Group, the corporate entity of all of her venues. Here, she shares a day in her busy schedule as she launches new restaurants in L.A., London, and New York.
6:00 AM
Land at JFK on the red-eye from LAX. My company, The ONE Group, has two restaurants, STK and Bagatelle, in West Hollywood, so I spend about one-third of my time there. I recently purchased a home in LA, so I guess one could say I’m bi-coastal, although I don’t love that term because I am 100 percent a New Yorker. I do, however, enjoy my time out there. When I am not working, I go on a lot of hikes and have dinner parties at the house.
7:30 AM
Go for a jog on the West Side Highway. Listen to Rihanna and Coldplay on my iPod.
9:00 AM
Walk over to the Gansevoort Park Hotel, where my company operates the food and beverage program. I get my daily green juice drink, which my colleagues refers to it as the ‘slime.’ It has kale, spinach, wheatgrass, apple, and pineapple. I plan on living to 100.
10:00 AM
Walk to my office in the Meatpacking District while on a conference call on my Blackberry. I often walk and talk into my headphones, so people on the street probably think I am a crazy lady.
11:00 AM
Meet with my assistant to make sure that all my meetings have been confirmed for the day. Make phone calls and answer emails on my Blackberry while pacing around my office. Sitting still at a desk was never my thing.
1:00 PM
Business lunch at STK Midtown where I nosh on my favorite lunch item, the lobster Cobb salad. The meeting is usually either a new business opportunity, or an event partnership where we go over logistics.
3:00 PM
Meet with my dear friend, Nicole Jones, wife of Andruw Jones of the New York Yankees. Nicole and Andruw are the ambassadors of Jaden’s Ladder, a non-profit organization that assists survivors of domestic violence with life-enhancing, post shelter programs. Every year my company donates vacation packages to be auctioned at the charity’s annual fundraiser.
5:00 PM
Head to Bagatelle for a chef tasting. I try not to eat too much of each dish, but I love French cuisine, so it’s a challenge. It’s amazing how my palate has become so discerning over the years.
7:30 PM
Meet friends at Asellina for dinner and drinks. My favorites on the menu include the Buffalo Mozzarella appetizer and the homemade pasta dish, pistachio garganelli. While it may appear that I am socializing, I am still at one of my venues, so I am paying close attention to the flow of service and introducing myself to new faces.
11:30 PM
I make my way back to my loft apartment overlooking Madison Square Park. I usually end my night by lighting candles and unwind with a glass of red wine after pushing send on the night’s last email.