A Culinary
Affair
We are passionate about ensuring that the celebration you share with friends and family on one of the most important days in your lifetime, reflects your tastes and brings you joy.
Led by Executive Chef Nicolas Legret, our talented team will work closely with you to design personalized menus and stunning presentations for all your wedding moments.
Our Chefs
Nicolas Legret
Executive Chef Nicolas Legret earned his C.A.P Classic French Cuisine in Blois, France at the Blois Restaurant School in 1988, and upon graduation, he worked in France at several important hotels, including the Two-Star Michelin restaurant at the Hôtel Le Bristol, the Two-Michelin-Star restaurant at Hôtel Le Crillon, and the Two-Michelin-Star restaurant Le Grand Vefour, all located in Paris.
Legret was Chef de Cuisine at the Willard Room at The Willard InterContinental Hotel,from 2006 to 2009. Here, Legret helped revitalize the fine dining restaurant in collaboration with Antoine Westermann, who was awarded three Michelin stars as the chef and owner of Le Buerehiesel in Strasbourg, France.
His hotel culinary experience also includes working as Executive Sous Chef, once again working under the renowned Westermann, at the Sofitel Hotel, Lafayette Square for two years, assuming the responsibilities of an executive chef.
Throughout his career, Legret honed his skills at some outstanding freestanding restaurants including Bistro 123 in McLean, Virginia, where he oversaw the French menu and was responsible for daily operations. He also worked at Le Mas Perrier/Le Bec-Fin in Philadelphia, where he served as Executive Sous Chef for three years. Here he collaborated with George Perrier to include menu design and concept execution.
Legret joined The Hay-Adams culinary team as Chef de Cuisine in 2009, before his promotion to Executive Chef in 2016.
Mitch Eldridge
In 2021, Mitch Eldridge joined The Hay-Adams as Executive Sous Chef, overseeing the hotel’s entire culinary and stewarding operation. This includes curating seasonal menus, creating recipes, researching and sourcing ingredients, managing service standards, and hiring and leading kitchen staff, all focused on the outstanding experiences offered at The Lafayette restaurant and Off the Record bar, in the room service offering, and at holiday-event meals such as Thanksgiving Brunch.
Eldridge’s journey to becoming a professional chef was somewhat of a surprise to him. A part-time job at a catering BBQ venue in Oklahoma at age 14 began to spark a realization in Eldridge that cooking held fascination for him, as did the concept of hospitality. Eldridge enrolled at Le Cordon Bleu in Austin, Texas. Although he was surprised at how rigorous the training was, his inherent work ethic accompanied a burgeoning realization that cooking was not only fun, it was also a creative outlet.
After completing his degree, Eldridge gained nearly 10 years of experience in different culinary positions at Fairmont hotel properties throughout the US and Canada, before joining the Hay-Adams. He started at Fairmont Banff Springs as a cook, then transferred to Chicago’s Fairmont Millennium Park, and later to Fairmont Washington D.C. Georgetown, where he earned two promotions within two years. From Chef to Partie to Sous Chef, Eldridge was primed for his advancement to joining The Hay- Adams as Executive Sous.
Thoughtful Collaborations
We work with others who share our commitment to environmentally sound business practices. Whenever possible, we seek out purveyors with whom we share an interest in responsible choices and operations. These include organic local food growers and vendors to local breweries, dairy farmers, composting companies, and more.
