The Team
Bruce Marder
Bruce Marder has been a restaurateur since 1972. He has opened and consulted on thirteen restaurants in his forty-plus year of experience. His new concepts of cuisine and award-winning innovations as a chef garnered rave reviews from leading Southern California restaurant writers: `Overall, Capo has got everything right: the ambiance, the service, the wine list. Everything…´ S. Irene Virbila, Los Angeles Times Magazine. In recent conversations with Merrill Schindler, another noted restaurant writer and the head of the Zagat Guide, Mr. Schindler predict that in the near future, Capo will be the number one restaurant in Los Angeles.
Bruce Marder’s ability to open cutting edge restaurants in Los Angeles has earned him the respect of restaurant royalty. His trend-setting West Beach Café brought art and food to Venice in the 70′s and defined California cuisine for nearly two decades. In Marder’s desire to move upward in fine dining, he sold West Beach Café and opened Capo. His other establishment, Rebecca’s Restaurant, brought art and architecture into dining. It became world-famous and was published in most major magazines in the United States, Europe, and Asia. He also consulted on the opening of DC-3 and attracted lines of patrons nightly. DC-3 won Interior Magazine′s ′Restaurant Design of the Year Award′.
Moving forward into the new millennium, Bruce Marder has put his expertise toward a modern-day concept that will define restaurant dining for many years to come. Bruce Marder is currently operating five restaurants and a bakery on the Westside: Capo, Brentwood Restaurant & Lounge, and Cora’s Coffee Shoppe. The newest concepts are The Rooster in Santa Monica, which also houses our bakery, and Marvin in Beverly Hills adjacent.
Chef Ricky Moreno
Ricky Moreno is the Executive Chef of Capo, Cora’s Coffee Shoppe and Marvin. He is also a Managing Partner at Marvin.
Ricky grew up in Mexico City and at age seventeen moved to Los Angeles. Here he landed his first restaurant job prepping food at Seventh Heaven. He fell completely in love with food. For the next decade, he worked days and apprenticed at night with some of the leading chefs in the city including Josiah Citrin of the two Michelin starred Melisse, Raphael Lunetta of JiRaffe Restaurant, and Michel Richard.
In 1992, Ricky joined the Broadway Deli and under Bruce Marder’s tutelage, he continued his learning taking himself to new heights in the culinary world. Moving from the salad station to line cook, to supervising chef, Ricky quickly grew to be Bruce’s protégée. In 1998 he opened Capo with Bruce as Head Chef. Since then Capo has been a landmark restaurant in Los Angeles.
As Bruce continues to expand his restaurants, Ricky has been the opening Executive Chef of Cora’s Coffee Shoppe, Cafe Capo, Brass-Cap, House Cafe and now Marvin.