Michael Patria
With a decade’s worth of experience and lifetime love of food under his belt, Chef Michael Patria brings a creative flair to the dining experience at Four Seasons Hotel Atlanta. In his role as executive chef, he oversees the kitchen of breakfast destination, Park 75 and its popular lunch and dinner outlet, Bar Margot. Chef Patria’s culinary repertoire includes stints in Atlanta and San Francisco, but the beginning dates back to his youth and time spent in the kitchen with an Italian father and a mother with deep Kentucky roots. He recalls many a family dinner eating everything from authentic Italian pasta dishes to his favorite Southern delicacy: fried pork chops. The way his parents managed to merge the flavors of Italy and the American South inspired Patria’s own drive to create new dishes and experiment with genres.
Although he’s always gravitated toward food, Patria fell into the profession by accident. Right out of high school, a dishwashing gig for extra pocket change turned into a job on the prep line when one of the restaurant’s prep cooks was injured. In his serendipitous new role, he quickly fell in love with the culture of the kitchen and realized that food had always been his passion. Today, his philosophy on cooking is simple: put a modern spin on classic techniques and, most importantly, “have fun with it.” Chef Patria thrives on the collaboration that is possible in a large, multi-faceted hotel kitchen and in an emerging food scene like Atlanta’s. He draws inspiration not only from his eclectic culinary upbringing but from browsing local farmer’s markets and sitting down to talk about food with other chefs in the area. At home, he cooks the dishes that he doesn’t get the chance to cook at work, always trying to expand his skill set to encompass the techniques of various cultures and types of food.
Chef Patria has honed his talent through positions in the kitchens of the The Buckhead Diner, The Ritz-Carlton Hotel San Francisco, SOHO Steakhouse, Alon’s Bakery and Market, and Peasant Bistro. His most recent position was with Fifth Group Restaurants’ Ecco, where he served three years as the restaurant chef of the airport location and two years as the executive chef of the midtown location. He is excited to return to the hotel environment where he has the opportunity to work with a diverse and hardworking team of culinary experts. Patria intends to put his inventive spirit to good use, building upon the menus of Park 75 and Bar Margot while maintaining and elevating the five star, five diamond status of Four Seasons Hotel Atlanta.