Master Chefs Expanding Their Restaurant Empires

A lot of news on celeb/master chefs moving into new locations! Out of the New York Times, French chef Alain Ducasse is heading up a new spot at the W Retreat & Spa in Vieques Island, Puerto Rico, opening in November. According to the article, the restaurant will be named Mix on the Beach, and will incorporate Caribbean and Mediterranean influences. Ducasse joins other great chefs in the W Hotel family including Todd English, who facilitates Olives at W Union Square in NYC, and Jean-Georges Vongerichten, who recently opened J&G Steakhouse at W Washington D.C.

Well-known chef Emeril Lagasse is heading to the Las Vegas playing field! Lagasse is set to open a new sports-themed restaurant in the The Palazzo. The new venture, named Lagasse’s Stadium, will take over the 25,000 ft. space formerly home to The Sportsbook Bar & Grill, and will feature nearly 100 high-definition television screens for sports viewing, as well as dishes from Lagasse’s traditional Southern menu.

Rob Goldstein, president and chief operating officer of The Palazzo and The Venetian, said, “With its accessible location and unique design it will provide sports enthusiasts a great location to kick back, relax and enjoy great food and beverages while watching their favorite sporting games and highlights on the big screens.”

Finally, it was confirmed late this morning that New York wunderkind David Chang, of Momofuku fame, is the process of developing a new project for midtown Manhattan. The Chambers Hotel on West 56th Street will host the new restaurant, with room service starting over the next few months, and the full restaurant opening later this year. Chang says the cuisine will be French Vietnamese, and will be facilitated by Mr. Tien Ho, the former chef de cuisine at Momofuku Ssam Bar.

But given the ways his other restaurants have mutated after their openings, that could all change, Mr. Chang said: “Who knows, it could start out to be French Vietnamese and the way we do things, it could be a crab shack in a year.”

~Jennifer Heigl

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