The LA fires are set to be the costliest wildfire disaster in California history. (Credit: Mario Cobian/Adobe Stock)
Travis Passerotti fondly recalls how he and his wife, Steph, once lived in a charming little home with a wonderful garden. It was their tranquil retreat, a slice of peaceful solitude in the Pacific Palisades, an affluent coastal neighborhood west of Los Angeles.
“We loved it. It was a peaceful and beautiful little place. Knowing that it is not green anymore breaks my heart,” Passerotti said.
The Passerottis’ home was one of the thousands destroyed by the Palisades fire.
According to online real estate marketplace Point2Homes and an Associated Press report on Tuesday, of the 10,030 Palisades housing units (single family homes and condominiums), this fire alone has destroyed approximately 6,837 homes and other structures. In total, the wildfires in the Los Angeles region have destroyed more than 10,000 homes and claimed the lives of 29 people, the AP reported.
Passerotti, a 38-year-old co-head chef for one of the newest upscale restaurants, Marea Beverly Hills, moved to California from Oregon where he began creating his culinary career. He became a member of $2.7 billion SELCO Community Credit Union, opening his first account about 20 years ago, and still does his banking with the Springfield, Ore.-based financial cooperative.
Chef Passerotti is known for his expertise in seasonally focused, terroir-driven cuisine, blending Southern Californian and Coastal European influences. He uses sustainably sourced ingredients and holds a deep knowledge of local food communities, according his profile posted by the Tasting Kitchen in Venice, where he previously served as executive chef.
On Jan. 7 when the Palisades fire began, Passerotti was on his way to work. Earlier that morning he took his wife to a doctor’s appointment. Steph is battling breast cancer. After receiving a second evacuation notice, he drove back home where his wife had packed a few things. It took them more than two hours to get out of their neighborhood, where fires were raging on either side of the roads, the sky was dark and black ashes were falling everywhere.
The Passerottis have been able to find temporary housing that they have been renting from friends, and he has had nothing but strong support from his colleagues and supervisors at the restaurant, which first opened for business about two weeks ago.
“I couldn't have ever imagined being with a team for such a short amount of time and receiving the level of support that I've received from everyone in the company,” he said. “Having all of this happen, right smack in the middle of the opening of a restaurant has really just been a whole just another layer of stress. We’re still facing a mountain of a to-do list and everything that goes into figuring out how to rebuild.”
One of his friends, Rebecca Hough-Levine, who is associated with the Altamarea Group, a world renowned hospitality group based in New York, organized a fundraising initiative on the GoFundMe website to help the Passerottis. This group was founded in 2009 with the launch of Marea in New York City, its flagship restaurant,and currently owns and operates more than 20 fine dining restaurants around the world.
As of Wednesday afternoon, $88,342 of the $100,000 goal has been raised.
“It'll give us the ability to start rebuilding without sinking ourselves into debt,” Passerotti said. “The kindness from so many people - friends, friends of friends, strangers - and the amount of support we’ve received has been really mind-blowing. It makes it feel a little less lonely knowing that there are many people who are trying to do something to help us.”
To consider helping the Passerottis, please visit their GoFundMe page.
Contact Peter Strozniak at [email protected].
© 2025 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
