About Us

Born in France, surrounded by fruit trees, Chef Bertoia soon discovered that exceptional desserts could be made out of those marvelous gifts from nature. 

Chef Bertoia’s background includes working with Jean François Castagné M.O.F. (Meilleur Ouvrier de France) in chocolate, plus several 2- and 3-star restaurants recognized by Michelin Guide. Prior to his move to Paris Gourmet, he was Corporate Pastry Chef at The Dinex Group for 15 years, where he managed and opened 15 restaurants and two Épiceries Boulud around the world.

Today, he is the Corporate Pastry Chef at Paris Gourmet and manages our culinary team. Eric leads research and development of the Beurremont, Pastry 1, and Amifruit brands.  He has the experience and versatility to bridge classic French pâtisserie and the flourishing modern American pastry, and he’s excited about helping others achieve their culinary ambitions.

Born in Oberhausen, Germany, to Italian immigrants from Sicily, Chef Romano had a “pretty sweet” upbringing — from “Kaffee and Kuchen” on Sunday afternoons in Germany to yearly family vacations alongside Sicily’s beaches in the province of Agrigento to eating granitas and gelatos in some of the most historic towns and piazzas in Sicily.

Nicknamed “Charlie” at the age of 13, Calogero and his family ventured to New York City, where he continued his education in the American school system and later on at the Culinary Institute of America. While attending the CIA, Chef Romano did an externship at The Ritz Carlton Hotel Amelia Island, FL, under the guidance of Chef James Mullaney. He also sat on the judging panel on Food Network’s “Throwdown with Bobby Flay,” was appointed to the U.S. State Department of American Chef Corps, and served as the Executive Pastry Chef at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York City for 10 years. 

Today, Chef Romano is a pastry chef technicians at Paris Gourmet. His responsibilities include: R&D of the Gelatech, Bon Patissier, and Bread Alert brands; adapting ingredients to the market; customer/chef training; and extensive recipe development. He has the experience and versatility to help customers of Paris Gourmet master techniques in all aspects of pastry, including chocolate & sugar work, confections, gelato and frozen desserts, various types of doughs, plated desserts, and entremets.

Chef Frédéric Larré’s enjoyment of culinary delights goes further back than he can remember. At age 16, he started his career as an apprentice at Honoré Pâtissier in Paris, France. During his obligatory duty to the French Armed Forces, he also served as Pastry Chef at Élysée Palace, the official residence of the President of the French Republic. Since then, nothing has brought him more pleasure than presenting his amazing creations and decadent treats, both at lavish events and intimate in-home gatherings.

After landing in New York City, Chef Larré began working in the pastry kitchen at the Payard Pâtisserie & Bistro. He then joined the opening team at the renowned Bellagio in Las Vegas, which lead to a five-year stint at Le Cirque at the Bellagio. He has served as Pastry Chef at other outstanding Vegas properties, such as Mandalay Bay’s Mix and Vdara Hotel & Spa, operated by MGM Resorts International.

Chef Larré’s enjoyment of life, passion for the art of French pastry, exceptional leadership skills, and dedication to using only the finest ingredients made him the perfect addition to our Paris Gourmet family. He serves as Pastry Chef Technician in the central region of the United States and leads innovation and development for the Cacao Noel, Cuisine Tech, and Nutley Farms brands.  His mission is to promote awareness of Paris Gourmet’s leading pastry ingredient brands so that all culinary professionals have a chance at being the best.

Chef Pascal Condomine was born in France, where he later apprenticed at the Michelin two-star Hôtel de France. He returned briefly to the Hôtel de France to work under Master Chef André Daguin, but truly distinguished himself as a French chef when he came to the United States. 

Chef Condomine worked at the New York Times three-star Park Bistro and was Chef de Cuisine at Gascogne. He then returned to another Daguin kitchen in New York as Executive Chef of D’Artagnan Rôtisserie where, “The food”, wrote William Grimes, “is authentic, robust, earthy, and powerfully flavored.” Or as Gael Greene put it, “irresistibly French.” 

Chef Condomine joined Paris Gourmet in 2022 as Chef Technician. He heads the savory ingredients program and educates clients about versatility and benefits of Paris Gourmet’s Tierra de Espana and Gourmand brands.

Chef Mohamad Al Kassem was born in Syria, and moved to Paris at the age of nine. Being
raised between the two countries gave him a great sense of integrity and appreciation for food
with locally sourced ingredients. The pursuit of his culinary career started at the renowned École
Grégoire-Ferrandi in Paris. He later worked closely with Chef Laurent Duchêne M.O.F. (Meilleur
Ouvrier de France) in pastry to open a French bakery concept in Beirut, Lebanon. Two year
later, Mohamad worked at Potel et Chabot Paris with Chef Marc Rivière, double world pastry
champion.

Chef Al Kassem ventured over to the United States in 2013 where we worked for Maison
Kayser for 6 years as their Executive Pastry Sous Chef. In 2019 he assisted Team USA at the
Coupe du Monde de la Pâtisserie in Lyon, France.

Shortly after marrying, he opened a family owned bakery with his wife and two children in New
Jersey. Today, Chef Al Kassem works for Paris Gourmet as one of their chef technicians.