Alize at the Top of the Palms The Palms Hotel & Casino
4321 W Flamingo Rd
Las Vegas, Nevada 89103
(702)951-7000 www.andrelv.com/alize/
Mark Purdy was born in New York City but his awareness of food developed in the farm country of Lancaster County, Pa. where he spent much of his childhood. He observed the Pennsylvania Dutch and Amish farmers’ respect for the land and its bounty. It was, however, on summer vacations to Nantucket Island, near Cape Cod, where he realized cooking might be his calling.
Purdy’s first bona fide job, at the age of 13, was as a dishwasher in the kitchen of a modest Nantucket restaurant. He next moved on to another small restaurant where he started doing basic prep work for the chef, but then was quickly thrown into the world of professional cooking. He worked at that café for five successive summers and it was there he adopted a strong work ethic and was introduced to the poetry of plating food. After graduating from Skidmore College, Purdy took a job in Washington, D.C. as Sous Chef at the trattoria, I Matti, a sibling of chef Roberto Donna’s highly acclaimed Galileo restaurant.
He returned to New York and worked as an appetizer cook at the famed Aureole under celebrity chef Charlie Palmer, where he was exposed to true haute cuisine and world-class service standards. Palmer further reinforced Purdy’s sense of commitment and mentored him in every aspect of the business. During his two years at there, Purdy mastered every cooking station and ascended to the position of Chef Tournant. In 1998, Palmer invited him to be the opening Executive Sous Chef at the new Aureole at the Mandalay Bay Hotel in Las Vegas.
Purdy was then tapped by Palmer to serve as Chef de Cuisine at his new Dry Creek Kitchen, in the Sonoma wine country, in 2002. Dry Creek Kitchen was an instant success and Purdy was named Rising Star Chef by the San Francisco Chronicle.
Purdy and his wife were anxious to return to Las Vegas, so he returned in 2004 and began consulting for a number of high-profile restaurants. Within six months, chef/restaurateur André Rochat recruited him as Chef de Cuisine for Alizé at the Top of the Palms.
