Lior Lev Sercarz
Lior Lev Sercarz
Much like a “nose” in perfumery, Lior Lev Sercarz uses his fine-tuned palate to create memorable flavors. Lior is a chef, spice blender and owner of La Boîte Biscuits & Spices, a spice shop and art gallery in New York City’s Hell’s Kitchen. He enjoys a biography that includes over thirty years of travels, encounters, stories, and long hours in front of the stove all of which somehow find their way into his pungent spice blends, French biscuits and books including The Art of Blending and the forthcoming The Spice Companion.
Lior has helmed La Boîte since 2006, where he creates scores of innovative and evocative spice blends, each a reflection of a place, a moment, or cultural influence. He also bakes two seasonal biscuit collections each year, each featuring a different blend of spices, engages artists to create original works that adorn the limited-edition biscuit tins, and exhibits their work in the shop.
Lior and La Boîte have been profiled in national publications including The New York Times, Vogue, In Style, Food & Wine and the Saveur magazine 100.
Today, with La Boîte and his books, Lior believes his mission is to inform people about where spices come from, how they grow, what they look like in their natural environment, and, ultimately, how to be inspired by them in the kitchen. Lior says he is happiest when he and a client can engage in dialogue and explore their cooking styles so he can make the right spice recommendations.
“The growing demand for spices and interest in global fare keeps pushing me to learn and innovate,” adds Lior.
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[Programming descriptions are generated by participants and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of SXSW.]
Programming descriptions are generated by participants and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of SXSW.