~ Permanently Closed ~

Maria del Pilar Sanchez grew up in Santa Barbara, California, and has created a following from California to Paris and back again. Pilar spent three years as sous chef with The Wine Cask, a Wine Spectator Grand Award wine list recipient, in Santa Barbara.

Sanchez majored in Biology at Santa Barbara City College before moving on to a pastry major at UCLA's Extension in Los Angeles. She received her degree in Hotel and Restaurant Management and Culinary Arts from Oxnard College where she was on the Dean’s List (4.0 GPA) and was recipient of the California Restaurant Association, San Francisco Restaurant Association and Oxnard College Foundation Scholarships. She has participated in continuing education courses at the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone.

Following stints at Santa Barbara's Four Seasons Biltmore with Mario Batali, Ernie's with Alain Rondelli and the Four Seasons Clift in San Francisco, she and husband, Didier Lenders, opened the overnight success, Café del Sol, in Paris to rave reviews from critics and patrons alike.

Pilar spent five years at the Relais & Chateau Meadowood Napa Valley resort as Chef de Cuisine and Banquet Chef. The Culinary Institute of America was Pilar’s next stop as Executive Chef of the Wine Spectator restaurant.

Chef Sanchez has appeared as guest chef on CNN’s On the Menu with Carolyn O'Neal, NBC's Travel Café, CBS's Saturday Morning and PBS's Traditions with Burt Wolfe.

She was a winning chef contestant on TV Food Network’s Ready, Set, Cook, which led to Pilar co-hosting the TV Food Network Melting Pot’s Mediterranean Table with Rocco di Spirito. Pilar may now also be seen on the PBS series, Chefs of the Napa Valley.

Pilar currently hosts an ongoing series of educational videos, Nutrition 4 Less, Healthy 4 Life, sponsored by Food 4 Less in which she teaches families the value of good nutrition and a healthy diet. She shops and cooks on-air and explains that good food need not be expensive, nor preparation be complicated, to be healthy. In 2002, Chef Sanchez was awarded a Vision Award for the show honoring her efforts as host chef. The show won a 2003 Telly award and an Award for Excellence, honors selected from the finest of video and film productions from all 50 states and five continents.

Pilar has served as both Culinary Chair and Grand Master Chef for the Napa Valley Wine Auction where she orchestrated and served nearly 4000 gourmet meals in the course of a 24-hour period.

She was one of the "Best Hotel Chefs of America" at the James Beard House and was awarded "Star Chef" by Lodging Magazine. In the beginning of her northern California career, Pilar was selected by San Francisco Examiner Magazine as one of the "Top Ten Undiscovered Chefs."

Chef Sanchez and four other professional chefs from across the country currently serve on the Culinary Council for Freschetta Pizza, a two year advisory position.

Didier Lenders was born in France and began his food career as an apprentice at the Michelin 2-star Dodin Bouffant in Paris. Committed to a profession in the world of fine food, Didier graduated from the L’Ecole Hotelliere de Paris in 1980 before traveling to New York in July of that year.

His early years in New York landed Didier at some of New York's finest French restaurants, including La Cote Basque, la Gauloise, La Caravelle and Le Cirque, before his travels west led him to The Lodge at Pebble Beach. Lenders worked his way up from banquet sous chef through executive sous chef and, finally, to executive chef at The Lodge.

He then opened the dining facilities at the Lafayette Park Hotel in Lafayette before serving as the pre-opening consultant for San Francisco's new Portman Hotel. Lenders set up the operations for the food service operations of this exclusive luxury hotel, including budgeting, forecasting and purchasing of all inventory and equipment.

That position along with his past experiences brought Lenders to the California Culinary Academy where he served as chef and instructor, specializing in all levels of instruction, including basic culinary techniques, presentation, demonstration and advanced business courses.

Didier then spent four years at the legendary Mobil 5 Star and AAA Five Diamond Ernie’s in San Francisco under acclaimed Chef Alain Rondelli. It was at Ernie’s that executive sous chef Didier and chef de partie Pilar met and became the dynamic epicurean duo they are today.

Following their dreams, the couple then moved back to Paris to open the acclaimed Café del Sol, a "French-Mex" restaurant that set Paris afire. Among the many kudos, Gault et Millau and Saveur magazine both raved about the unique establishment.

Didier and Pilar moved back to the States in 1995 when Didier became executive sous chef at Meadowood Napa Valley and was charged with creating and implementing the purchasing and inventory control systems for the growing food and beverage department at this Relais & Chateau resort. After a short development stint at Rosewood Corporation’s La Samanna in St. Martin, Didier returned to Meadowood as executive chef and was given full responsibility for menu development for all three restaurants, all catering and private dining on and off-site, cost controls, hiring, training, purchasing, budgets and stewarding.

It was during this period at Meadowood when Didier became the "master in charge" of the highly visible and prestigious Napa Valley Wine Auction, planning, budgeting, ordering and preparing for 4000 gourmet meals within a 24-hour period. He held this responsibility for seven years. Lenders' experience in not only the finer points of creating an attractive, healthful and delicious menu, but in the business side of sourcing ingredients, creating and adhering to budgets, training staff, developing and maintaining vendor relations, have all been instrumental in leading Didier and Pilar to open their own restaurant, Pilar. . .and the fact that Didier is fluent in three languages means they could do it anywhere!