Curtis Stone’s Maude Transitions Into Wine-Region Inspired Menu Beginning in 2018

Curtis Stone’s Beverly Hills restaurant Maude, which announced earlier this year that it will no longer be doing monthly tasting menus centered around a single ingredient, is transitioning to a quarterly menu that will be inspired by a specific wine region from around the world.

Executive chef Justin Hilbert, who’s overseen the kitchen since April 2016, will oversee the transition from a fixed nine-course tasting to something that could change depending on the season. However, Maude will still remain a complete tasting menu experience, though one imagines the wine focus will encourage diners to opt for a beverage pairing.

Here’s what Stone had to say about the new focus:

By focusing on wine regions as the hero and co-star of our menus, the format will still feel like Maude but Justin and the team will have more creative freedom to build a menu unrestrained from the inspiration that we find in each region

Ben Aviram will continue to oversee the wine program with new and old world picks that he will tailor to diners depending on their familiarity with wine. Andrey Tolmachyov, formerly of Osteria Mozza and Eleven Madison Park, bolsters the wine team as a new addition. The quarterly change reflects something similar to Next in Chicago, which does a complete concept and menu changeover every three months. The adjustment also belies a fixed menu that one might expect at places like Spago, Providence, and Melisse, three other fine dining restaurants that boast tasting menus.

At the moment, Maude is serving a “greatest hits” menu culled from three-and-a-half years of producing unique plates centered on seasonal produce. Then in November and December, the menu will feature white and black truffle, respectively, with a mix of some of those greatest hits.

• All Maude Coverage [ELA]

Clay Larsen