Spago is

Wolfgang Puck Wolfgang Johannes Puck (born July 8, 1949) is an Austrian chef and restaurateur. Early life Puck was born in Sankt Veit an der Glan, Austria. He learned cooking from his mother, who was a pastry chef. He took the surname of his stepfather, Jos ...

's flagship restaurant worldwide, known for serving

California cuisine California cuisine is a food movement that originated in Northern California. The cuisine focuses on dishes that are driven by local and sustainable ingredients with an attention to seasonality and an emphasis on the bounty of the region. Th ...

. Spago is Puck's first restaurant venture.

Name and history

The word "spago" is Italian for "string" or "twine". The plural would be "spaghi," which is the beginning of "spaghetti", and suggests that pasta is on the menu. The first Spago location opened in 1982, on the

Sunset Strip The Sunset Strip is the stretch of Sunset Boulevard that passes through the city of West Hollywood, California, United States. It extends from West Hollywood's eastern border with the city of Los Angeles near Marmont Lane to its western bord ...

West Hollywood West Hollywood is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Incorporated in 1984, it is home to the Sunset Strip. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, its population was 35,757. History Most historical writings about West Hollywood be ...

, California, with Mark Peel as

chef de cuisine A chef de cuisine (, French for ''head of kitchen'') or head chef is a chef that leads a kitchen and its cooks. A chef patron (feminine form ''chef patronne'') (French for ''boss chef'') or executive chef is a chef that manages multiple kitche ...

under Puck. The second Spago restaurant opened at The Forum Shops at

Caesars Palace Caesars Palace is a luxury hotel and casino in Paradise, Nevada, United States. The hotel is situated on the west side of the Las Vegas Strip between Bellagio and The Mirage. It is one of Las Vegas's largest and best known landmarks. Caesar ...

, on the

Las Vegas Strip The Las Vegas Strip is a stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard in Clark County, Nevada, that is known for its concentration of resort hotels and casinos. The Strip, as it is known, is about long, and is immediately south of the Las Vegas city limits ...

in 1992. It was closed in 2017 and relocated to Bellagio Las Vegas in spring 2018. In 1997, Wolfgang Puck opened a third location on Canon Drive in

Beverly Hills Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. A notable and historic suburb of Los Angeles, it is located just southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Beverly Hil ...

. In 1998, a Spago location opened in

Palo Alto Palo Alto ( ; Spanish language, Spanish for ) is a charter city in northwestern Santa Clara County, California, United States, in the San Francisco Bay Area, named after a Sequoia sempervirens, coastal redwood tree known as El Palo Alto. Th ...

which was closed in 2007. The original Spago Hollywood remained open until 2001 when Wolfgang Puck and his partners determined renovating the original 1920s-era house would be too costly. They let their lease on the location expire. In 2001, a location was opened at the

Four Seasons Resort Maui Four Seasons Resort Maui at Wailea is a resort in Wailea, on the island of Maui in Hawaii. It is part of the Four Seasons luxury hotels chain. It is the only resort on Maui to receive both the AAA Five Diamond Award and the Forbes (formerly Mo ...

, in Hawaii. In 2007, a location opened at the

Ritz-Carlton The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, LLC is an American multinational company that operates the luxury hotel chain known as The Ritz-Carlton. The company has 108 luxury hotels and resorts in 30 countries and territories with 29,158 rooms, in addit ...

Bachelor Gulch, in

Avon, Colorado Avon is a home rule town located in Eagle County, Colorado, United States. The town population was 6,072 at the 2020 United States census. The town is a part of the Edwards, CO Micropolitan Statistical Area. Avon is the gateway to the Beaver ...

(which closed in 2016). Shaved black truffles with pasta - Spago Las Vegas - March 2022 - Sarah Stierch

Spago opened its first location outside of the United States in

Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...

in the mid-1990s, which closed a few years later. It later opened a restaurant in

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

, at the

St. Regis Hotel St. Regis Hotels & Resorts () is an American multinational luxury hotel chain, owned and managed by Marriott International. History Origins In 1904, John Jacob Astor built the St. Regis New York as a sister property to his part-owned Waldor ...

in 2015. Other international locations include one in

Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

at the rooftop complex of

Marina Bay Sands Marina Bay Sands is a integrated resort fronting Marina Bay, Singapore, Marina Bay in Singapore and a landmark of the city. At its opening in 2010, it was deemed the world's most expensive standalone casino property at Singapore dollar, S$8&nbs ...

Awards and honorable recognitions

*In 2008 and 2009, Spago was awarded two

Michelin stars The ''Michelin Guides'' ( ; ) are a series of guide books that have been published by the French tyre company Michelin since 1900. The ''Guide'' awards up to three Michelin stars for excellence to a select few restaurants in certain geographic ...

*Since 2010, Spago has received the ''

Wine Spectator ''Wine Spectator'' is an American lifestyle magazine that focuses on wine, wine culture and wine ratings. It is the flagship publication of M. Shanken Communications, which also publishes ''Cigar Aficionado'', ''Whisky Advocate'', ''Market Watch' ...

'' Grand Award *In 2013,

Zagat The ''Zagat Survey'', commonly referred to as Zagat (stylized in all caps; , ) and established by Tim and Nina Zagat in 1979, is an organization which collects and correlates the ratings of restaurants by diners. For their first guide, coverin ...

named Spago the most iconic restaurant in the city of Los Angeles

References

External links

Spago Beverly Hills website
{{- Restaurants in Greater Los Angeles Restaurant chains in the United States Buildings and structures in Beverly Hills, California Companies based in Beverly Hills, California Restaurants established in 1982 1982 establishments in California Restaurants in California James Beard Foundation Award winners Fine dining