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Chef Cyrille Holota, formerly of the defunct JOEL Brasserie, has just been named the new chef at French American Brasserie, colloquially known as FAB.  It’s a somewhat interesting union, as both the restaurant and the new chef have been witness to a metamorphosis or two.

Holota, who appeared in an early rendition of Inside the Chef’s Kitchen, took over the helm of highly regarded JOEL after Joel Antunes, the restaurant’s namesake, left for the Big Apple.  Under his watch, JOEL transformed into JOEL Brasserie, a more toned down version of its predecessor.  Unfortunately, the restaurant died just a few months ago amidst a swirling of rumors.

Meanwhile, FAB has its own notable history.  For many years, a restaurant by the name of Brasserie Le Coze was a mainstay of the French culinary scene in Atlanta.  Stationed in Lenox Square, the restaurant operated from 1994 until 2007 (or thereabouts).  Operating under the ownership of Fabrice Vergez since 2003, BLC closed when Niemen Marcus went gang busters in Lenox.

It will be interesting to see how things change at FAB as the Holota signing seems like a bit of a coup.  In addition to several confirmations from people on the periphery, a call to the restaurant confirmed that Holota was the new chef.  However, the gentleman who answered the phone did not seem to have any more information for me.  I’ll see what else I can shake out.

Hey y’all … I’m mobile so this will be short. JOEL Brasserie has closed its doors … effective today. I’ve got details on who is taking over the space but ill have to wait until I’m back in front of the computer for all that.

JOËL Brasserie, the adapted version of JOËL, is set to stop serving lunch on April 1, 2010.  For now, it’s business as usual, so you can still grab one of their much discussed burgers.  I am not sure if anything else at the restaurant will change; however, it wouldn’t surprise me to hear a few more things get at little tweaking.  There are some other rumors out there as well, but nothing that can be printed as of yet.  Stay tuned.

JOËL Brasserie, that much maligned Buckhead restaurant, got some big news about an hour ago.  Roughly three weeks after the restaurant lost it’s liquor license, the government gods have smiled fortuitously on chef Cyrille Holota and his team.  Word from Holota is that the restaurant has gotten a shiny new liquor license and will celebrate this week with some deep discounts on wine.  Say what you will about the restaurant, I think we can all agree that this is a good thing.  Nothing is worse than a restaurant failing due to some government regulation.

Cheers to Holota!

This morning, as I was digging through my twitter feed, I came across this video.  It’s a nice little interview with Cyrille Holota, the executive chef at JOËL.  The Buckhead restaurant is still alive and kicking, long after the departure of namesake Joël Antunes.

JOËL Restaurant Address & Information:
3290 Northside Pkwy NW, Atlanta, GA 30327 // P: 404.233.3500 // JOEL Website // JOEL Menu

Russell Hays has surfaced.  Apparently, Hays has taken over as the executive chef at Peasant Bistro in downtown Atlanta.  Most recently the sous-chef de cuisine at JOËL, Hays has fluttered about Atlanta for a handful of years now.  In addition to a couple of stops at Joel, Hays has worked for both the Buckhead Life Restaurant Group and Concentrics Restaurants.

It will be interesting to see what, if anything, Hays does to the menu.  If you haven’t noticed, he has a propensity for job hopping … so we’ll see what happens here.  Maybe I’ll shoot over there on Monday for the Peasant’s mussels night so that I can see what’s going down.

Peasant Bistro Restaurant Address & Information:
250 Park Avenue West NW Atlanta, GA 30313 // P: 404.230.1724 // Peasant Bistro Reservations // Peasant Bistro Website // Peasant Bistro Dinner Menu (pdf)

Here’s something that will spread like wildfire amongst us local Atlanta bloggers: The Oak Room in New York finally had enough with the bad reviews (he’ah and he’ah).  While Frank Bruni may not deliver the apocalypse in all walks of life, as far as the NYC dining scene goes – he might be the one most likely to do just that.   According to John Kessler, Joël Antunes recently joined the rank and file of the unemployed.

I hate to say it folks; but, the idea that a highly regarded ATL chef didn’t pan out in New York is not a surprise.

NYT review guru Frank Bruni recently stopped in for a visit (or two) with Joël Antunès at the Oak Room at the Plaza.  Atlanta denizens called foul when Antunès departed his namesake, Joël, for the glitz and glitter of the famed New York restaurant.  Though Joël is still alive, it looks like Antunès might want to consider a return to the more relaxed digs of the deep south.

Bruni’s feelings are summarized with one short paragraph:

I’d recommend the Oak Room for anyone intent on an inimitable atmosphere and a baronial sense of splurge and who is willing to risk a forgettable, or even frustrating, meal. (Jackets, by the way, aren’t required but are “definitely preferred,” as a reservationist told me.)

Anywho, read it here and formulate your own opinion.