Meet the Team

Food & Beverage Director, Dan Sabo

Dan Sabo brings over 18 years of hospitality experience to his new role. Sabo joins the property from his most recent role as Director of Food & Beverage at Paligroup Management in Los Angeles. Reporting to the Hotel Manager, Sabo will lead the management and direction of the Food & Beverage division, ensuring seamless daily operations and excellent guest experiences. He will work directly with other key departments to ensure the overall guest experience is maximized and will oversee the development and coaching of Fairmont Century Plaza’s Food and Beverage colleagues.

Dan’s Jam – TBD

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Executive Chef, Atticus Garant

Executive Chef Atticus Garant, has constantly remained ahead of his time, springing off his career, directly after graduating with honors, as Head Chef in two of the world’s most exclusive islands, Langara Island, BC and Long Island, Bahamas. He later worked with Michelin-decorated chef, Daniel Boulud, which became the foundation for his continued pursuit of luxury dining. He spent a decade working for some of Fairmont’s finest properties in food-centric cities, such as Vancouver, Chicago and Austin, with projects in Pittsburgh, Mexico City and with the Culinary Institute of America. Throughout his tenure with Fairmont, Chef Garant has opened three hotels, four new restaurant concepts, and has earned numerous leadership awards. His travels have taken him to 17 countries, where he has experienced many of the world’s celebrated restaurants, including a stage at Noma. This global view along with his two decades of experience will be the guiding force to his vision for the property, where he will lead an all house-made program. Reuniting with Mr. Philip Barnes, who Chef worked with at Fairmont Pacific Rim, and who also shares a collegial management approach, Chef Garant will oversee the entire culinary and stewarding operations with innovation, exceptional guest service and culture as the department’s foundation.

Chef Atticus’ go-to bop: The Notorious B.I.G, “Juicy”

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Director of Events, Stephen Friddle

Before opening the Fairmont Century Plaza as Director of Events, Stephen was with our sister property, Fairmont San Jose, where he directed large events up to 3000 guests, utilizing 75,000 square feet of onsite and offsite event space. Prior to Fairmont, Stephen worked in various hotel leadership roles as Director of Events, Director of Catering, and Director of Rooms for hotels such as The London, Loews Santa Monica Beach Hotel, The Regency New York, St Regis Century City and the former Huntington Ritz Carlton Pasadena (now The Langham). Turning moments into memories on a grand scale is his passion.

Stephen’s Jam: David Bowie, “Let’s Dance”

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Assistant Director of Food and Beverage, Nikki Schwartz

Nikki Schwartz joins the Fairmont Century Plaza as the Assistant Director of Food and Beverage. Nikki began her hospitality career in Los Angeles in 1999 working at a few restaurants in her hometown of Los Angeles. She furthered her career by moving to San Francisco where she earned her Associates Degree in Occupational Science from Le Cordon Bleu. She worked at The Fifth Floor restaurant at The Palomar Hotel in San Francisco in January 2011. In April 2012, she moved back home to Los Angeles and took on the role of General Manager at Red Hill Restaurant. Nikki joined Petit Ermitage in West Hollywood, in August 2014, as Food & Beverage Manager and was promoted to the role of Assistant Director of Food & Beverage. In September 2016, she became the Food & Beverage Department Lead at the Loews Hotel in Hollywood, California. Nikki joins us from her most recent role as Director of Operations at 3 Mules Restaurant Group in Los Angeles, California.

Nikki’s Jam: Miriam Makeba, “Pata Pata”

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Executive Pastry Chef Michael Aguilar

With more than a decade of experience, Executive Pastry Chef Michael Aguilar has developed a strong background in chocolate work, from showpieces to bonbons and confections. A California native, Aguilar has worked most recently as Executive Pastry Chef for San Francisco-based The Absinthe Group. Previously, Aguilar also served as Executive Pastry Chef at The Beverly Hills Hotel, and held positions at WP24 by Wolfgang Puck at The Ritz-Carlton in Los Angeles, as well as at Fleur de lis at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas and St. Regis Monarch Beach Resort in Orange County.

Chef Michael’s all-time favorite: Metallica, “Master of Puppets”

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Beverage Manager, CJ Catalano

After 15 years working in independent restaurants, starting as a dishwasher at 14 years old, CJ is bringing his creative approach to building restaurant culture into the hotel world for his first time at the Fairmont Century Plaza. For the past 10 years his focus has been on all things liquid- and he has gained mentorship and recognition from some of the finest bartenders, restaurateurs and restaurant operators in the country. Originally from the Chicago suburbs, Catalano moved to Southern California in 2018 to take the role of Bar Manager at the 40,000 square-foot collaboration between San Francisco’s acclaimed bakery Tartine and Phoenix’s legendary Chris Bianco at The Manufactory LA.

CJ’s Jam: Post Malone, “Congratulations”

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Paul Quinn, General Manager Lumière

With an established history of managing and operating some of North American’s finest restaurants; and collaborating with highly-awarded chefs such as Daniel Boulud, Daniel Humm and Michael Tusk, Paul Quinn joins the powerhouse team of Lumière, a California Brasserie.Spending the early years of his career gaining experience managing everything from nightclubs, cafés, fine dining rooms and event companies, it was the position as General Manager of Beckta Dining and Wine in Ottawa, Canada that opened up a larger world for Paul. Beckta immeasurably raised the bar on fine dining in Ottawa during Paul’s tenure, which caught the attention of Danny Meyer. Quinn relocated to New York, where he became the Service Director of Eleven Madison Park. There he created a service program that would go on to earn 3 Michelin Stars and be voted the Best Restaurant in the World. He followed with a return to Canada as a member of Dinex Group, the parent company of Chef Boulud’s restaurants, serving as Director of the opening team of Vancouver’s two most awaited restaurants at that time, Lumière and DB Bistro. Then later as the General Manager of the Times Square location of DB Bistro. (Coincidentally, he and Chef Garant worked together during his time at Vancouver’s DB Bistro.) As more opportunities arose, Paul moved to San Francisco to become the General Manager of Quince, overseeing the transformation from a beloved a la carte neighborhood restaurant to a luxurious tasting menu destination within their new location. The new program at Quince would also go on to earn 3 Michelin stars. After Quince, Paul transitioned into consulting and ownership. Craving a return to a luxury dining framework, Paul naturally found his way to become part of Los Angeles’ most anticipated opening.

Paul’s Jam: The Tragically Hip, “Little Bones”

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Hear Our Stories
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