Comida Criolla - the characteristic foods of Latin America - presented in a market driven menu is the core concept of Palo Santo restaurant and wine bar. The farm-market friendly menu relies heavily on local organic products, supplemented by seasonal tropical imports. The restaurant’s culinary offerings vary from day to day depending on chef / owner Jacques Gautier’s current creative inspiration and the availability of certain ingredients.

Palo Santo diners enjoy elegant renditions of traditional dishes, such as sirloin steak topped with delicately sautéed Vidalia onions - Bistec Encebollado- a popular Latin American comfort food. Another dish frequently featured on the menu is Ceviche Costeño served with boiled sweet potatoes and corn on the cob. Chef Gautier’s menu shows a keen observation to authenticity, making each meal an experience matched only by a trip to the markets of Latin America.

After graduating from The Natural Gourmet Cookery School in Manhattan, Gautier developed his technique at New York’s Vong and San Francisco’s Azié, as well as the Brick Oven Gallery, a Brooklyn neighborhood favorite. While chef at Arioso, he was invited to cook at the James Beard House, the youngest to receive that honor. Two years later in 2001 he helped open La Brunette, a French-Caribbean bistro in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. During Gautier’s time at La Brunette he received much critical acclaim from The New York Times, Time Out New York, New York Magazine, The Brooklyn Papers, Haiti Observateur, and The Village Voice, as well as making his first live television appearance in a cooking segment on the Fox morning show, Good Day New York. Eric Asimov of The New York Times wrote, “even someone as tired as I am of crème brûlée could not help but be impressed by Mr. Gautier's nearly perfect key lime crème brûlée.”

Chef Gautier draws influence from Caribbean family roots as well as his extensive travels throughout Europe and the Americas. His eclectic Latin cooking expresses a versatile understanding of culinary tradition. Dishes maintain their original essence, with a new take on ingredients and presentation. Catalan classic Patatas Aïoli for example, is reinterpreted using Peruvian purple potatoes and fresh lime juice. This seemingly understated tapa was praised in New York Magazine as a “visually intriguing tower of purple potatoes and haricots verts,” heralding it as one of the top five winter salads of 2002. Also a favorite of New York Magazine was the oxtail and avocado terrine served with chili oil and long cut plantain chips – a rustic French dish accented by an unmistakable sasón Latino.