Langham New York's New Executive Chef Debuts Spring Menu

Langham Place Fifth Avenue welcomed its new executive chef David Vandenabeele back in December 2013. The chef's spring menu for Measure, the hotel's ground floor lounge, is slated to debut this week.

Just upstairs, by the way, is Ai Fiori, the intimate, Michelin-rated restaurant from Michael White.

The relatively casual jazz lounge belies the thoughtful menu prepared by Vandenabeele, who was previously the head chef of The Langham, London which dates back to the 1800s and has counted Winston Churchill, Wallis Simpson, and even the fictional Sherlock Holmes among its guests.

French-trained in Belgium, Australia, and England, the soft-spoken chef mixes classical training with a diverse spice palette and playful interpretations of British fare like a warm Scotch egg topped with curry sauce, and "old British mac and cheese," with a prosciutto and herb crust.

The chef shows off his talented light touch in dishes like his crudité salad with an assortment of baby root vegetables, a striped bass with Provençale vegetables, and dayboat scallops that are lightly spiced with a tandoori blend and plated with carrot purée and purple potatoes.

Finally, hidden in the dessert menu, is a collaboration between the chef and bar manager Michael Smith. Each month, the duo will create a new éclair inspired by a classic cocktail, along with two more monthly inventions. This month's cocktail inspiration is the Moscow Mule.