Big news this morning out of the Daniel Patterson camp, as Jeremy Fox amicably parts ways with Patterson and the upcoming Plum restaurant in Oakland (2214 Broadway). We thought it was a little strange when Fox wasn’t present at his own preview dinner at Il Cane Rosso last Monday, and now the Scoop reports that Patterson (presumably alongside Lauren Kiino) plans to cook the remainder of the preview dinners himself, allowing the public to watch the evolution of the menu prior to Plum’s mid-September opening. Fox leaves the project in order to pursue a couple of ventures of his own, including a restaurant in a space he’s been eying for a long time.
This means that Patterson’s Oakland project will likely return to being the buzz-worthy neighborhood restaurant from an established, name-brand chef that it was originally set to become, as opposed to the monstrously hyped destination restaurant with a rock star chef that it was about to become. As Patterson told Grub Street a few months back, the original plan was to create a casual menu with “Coi lineage” using his existing team (including Cane Rosso chef Kiino, who’s also set to become exec chef at their upcoming Jack London Square restaurant, Bracina), and to bring on another chef eventually to be dedicated exclusively to Plum. The Plum preview dinners continue each Monday, with a four-course prix fixe menu tonight for $45.
Fox couldn’t yet be reached for comment, but more on this breaking news as it develops!
Earlier: Jeremy Fox Reveals More About Plum, Upcoming Plans, and His Role at Daniel Patterson Group [Grub Street]
