For a restaurant that's only been open about two months, Tribute is going through chefs pretty quickly. Before the South Loop spot even opened, its initial chef, Paul Wildermuth sadly passed away and Brandon Baltzley stepped in. Then, Baltzley was replaced by Lawrence Letrero when the former had a drug relapse and headed to rehab. Now, according to a press release that went out this morning, Tribute has replaced Letrero with Jared Case, a chef most recently working in St. Louis.
Case comes off a two-year stint of working at a private club in St. Louis where he became well versed in facing the demands of a three-service kitchen, meaning breakfast, lunch and dinner. "The kitchen staff was having some difficulty handling the demand of the restaurant, so Lawrence has resigned and everyone parted ways amicably," a restaurant spokeswoman said. "The new chef has country club experience, so he is familiar with three service times, a large capacity restaurant and bigger scale events."
Case, who at one time worked at Marché and the East Bank Club (and even worked with Wildermuth), has already started changing some of the menu items. He so far has added some "signature" items, incuding bacon-wrapped scallops with grilled asparagus, crispy potatoes and tarragon mustard cream, and a Yankee pot roast with whipped potatoes and seasonal veggies. A full new menu should be coming soon.
· Former Red Light, Opera Chef Dies [~EChi~]
· Brandon Baltzley Out at Tribute; Lawrence Letrero In. Is Baltzley Heading to Rehab? [~EChi~]