We have quite a few new chef appointments to announce, starting with ~BIX~, who now has Edward Higgins as chef de cuisine (executive chef-partner Bruce Hill continues to be busy with Fog City). His background includes NYC’s Craft, Hearth, and Insieme, plus Ekki at the Four Seasons Hotel in Marunouchi, Japan, and Palo Alto’s Quattro. Some new items on the menu include: Bix chile-glazed fried chicken, Zuckerman’s asparagus soup with saffron aioli and toasted brioche, and Goodman Ranch veal chop pounded with king oyster mushrooms, garlic, and parsley.
Also in the city, SFoodie notes that SPARROW in the Upper Haight has a new chef, Rachel Stobel, whose background includes Chamber Eat + Drink and Range. 1640 Haight at Clayton, 415-622-6137.
Meanwhile, over in the 510, since ~GATHER~ chef and managing owner Sean Baker is busy with Verbena here in the city, a new executive chef has been promoted at Gather: Charis Wahl. She was opening sous for Baker in 2009 and was most recently chef de cuisine; she was previously at Rivoli Restaurant in Berkeley and Ozumo in Oakland. Her current menu includes steamed mussels with Calicraft kolsch, pickled green tomato, and cilantro; forbidden black rice with poached egg, crispy yuba, and spring vegetables; and roasted young chicken with injera purée, berbere, greens, and preserved citrus.
Big news in Oakland: the talented Charlie Parker has left Freddy Smalls in Los Angeles and returned to the Daniel Patterson Group to lead ~HAVEN~ (he was once opening chef at Plum). The previous executive chef, Chris Johnson, who has been at Haven since fall 2013, is returning to Coi.
Chef de cuisine Edward Higgins at Bix. Photo: Kristen Loken.
