Bravotv.com: What is your overlying philosophy on creating a great seafood dish?
Our mantra is that the fish is the star of the plate and all our efforts and creative vision support the mantra.

Bravotv.com: Overall, how did this experience compare to your other guest judging experiences?
I have always loved being a guest judge on Top Chef. This time was very different since I was hosting it at Le Bernardin. I felt very responsible for making sure that we provide everything possible for the contestants to shine. I always feel that the most important thing for me as a judge is to be fair, focusing solely on the quality of the food, not personalities.  I was certainly more involved and certainly felt more pressure to be an inspiration in this episode.

Bravotv.com: Anything you want to catch your fans up with that you’ve been doing lately?
First and foremost we are taking care of Le Bernardin and our other restaurants: 10 Arts in Philadelphia, Westend Bistro in Washington, D.C. and Blue in Grand Cayman Islands. All located in The Ritz Carlton hotels. I am also very involved with a food rescue organization called City Harvest in New York City. Their mission is to save unused food from restaurants, corporations, grocers, farmers, etc. and deliver the fresh food to agencies around the city who are serving those in need of a meal. Actually we just decided to give City Harvest $1 for every client who dines with us this year — and we anticipate a donation of upwards of $100,000 for the year. I’m also finishing shooting my own TV series called Avec Eric which will debut nationally this Fall on PBS. The show has been shot on location in HD in Italy, Northern California and New York.

Last but not least, I’m just about to conclude promotion of my new book called On The Line.

To keep updated on what is going on with me, please check out my Web site: www.aveceric.com