The rumblings about Walter Manzke's exit from Bastide wafted through the air at Chefs & Champagne on Sunday. Bastide, which only reopened in September after closing for almost two years, owned by Joe Pytka, who's now gone through three top chefs in the restaurant's lifespan. We didn't have confirmation from either camp by the time it hit Eater on Monday morning, but it came soon after: Manzke (and wife Margarita) were out, Paul Shoemaker was in. Bastide got a solid three stars from the LAT---not quite the four stars it garnered with Alain Giraud at the helm, but not the one scathing star for Ludovic Lefebvre---they just added lunch, things seemed to be on track. So why and why now? The story from Joe Pytka's camp was that Manzke "left of his own volition," but several uninvolved tipsters suggested he was asked to leave. Manzke says "It was unexpected but mutual. I wouldn't have left if he didn't want me to leave." More insight from the chef, next.
All stories about "Bastide"
In The Elements of Cooking, Michael Ruhlman defines a "shoemaker" as an untalented cook, but he was recently corrected by Napa Valley's Ad Hoc chef David Cruz: "To call a fellow cook a shoemaker is a not-uncommon put down in kitchens. But talent or no talent was not the point, Cruz said. 'Shoemaker' indicated someone who didn't care, who, in the heat of service, simply slapped food on a plate, wanting only to get the night over with, to get the food out the door and go home." We're sure this all amuses Paul Shoemaker, new executive chef of Bastide. [Ruhlman/ELA]
With Walter Manzke's quick exit from Bastide, Pytka has no time for chef auditions: “I am excited that Paul [Shoemaker] is available at a moment’s notice, and I look forward to tasting his masterful and enthusiastic cuisine. The best is yet to come!” [~ELA~]
You heard it here first: Walter Manzke, six months in as executive chef at Bastide, has left the Joe Pytka operation. Bastide reps confirmed, and Pytka's not saying much until he returns from traveling. From what we understand, Manzke left of his own volition, and Paul Shoemaker, former Providence chef de cuisine, has taken the reins. We have no idea what this means for the tentative plans Shoemaker had with former Rustic Canyon chef Samir Mojader. More details as they come in. [~ELA~]
Whoa. Still awaiting confirmation, but the huge rumor at last night's Chefs & Champagne event on Melrose Place is that Walter Manzke is no longer executive chef at Bastide. Owner Joe Pytka lured Manzke from the Monterey peninsula to reopen Bastide after being shuttered for almost two years; it only and finally opened in September '07. If true, it's still unclear whose decision it was. We didn't see him but heard Manzke was at the event, and we don't know if Bastide had a table but they were offering Champagne, chocolates and suckling pig sliders (dear God, someone serve those all the time) in the leafy garden patio. A few chefs confirmed the rumor not with words, but in code: Sometimes just a look and a nod explains it all. Story developing, plus a C&C Hangover Report soon. UPDATE: Totally confirmed.
· It's Official: Walter Manzke in at Bastide [~ELA~]
· CONFIRMED: Bastide Officially Opens Tomorrow [~ELA~]
· Eater Inside: Bastide [~ELA~]
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