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When most chefs cook, they are representing their restaurants. When Feliberto Estevez cooks, he's representing New York City.
"That is a challenge, but at the same time I see a unique, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for myself as chef," Estevez, the senior executive chef of Gracie Mansion, said in an interview.
Estevez has been at the helm of Gracie's narrow but well-equipped kitchen since 2002, when he was hired under then-Mayor Michael Bloomberg. It's a big job: Gracie Mansion hosts thousands of New Yorkers a year. There are receptions honoring nearly every ethnic group you can think of, holiday parties for the press, or the City Council, or municipal employees.
On Friday, Estevez was busy preparing for a holiday party in honor of the city's community boards. The guest list was around 500 people - too big a crowd to host inside the mansion, where the first floor is reserved for events and...