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Chef Jessica Largey's much-anticipated Los Angeles debut, Simone, is eyeing a fall opening.
The L.A. Times announced the project in April of last year with an opening date that has been delayed (it's L.A., so, of course) quite substantially. The opening team amassed for the restaurant read as something of a who's who in the industry.
Largey is a Southern California native who landed on the line at Providence when she was 19, then built her reputation as Chef de Cuisine at Michelin three-starred Manresa in Los Gatos. She was also awarded the 2015 James Beard Rising Star Chef award.
Simone will also have Jordan Egan, former sommelier at The Nomad in Manhattan, join as beverage director. Iain McPherson, internationally-acclaimed bartender who opened Panda & Sons in Edinburgh, will be running the bar program. And the restaurant's partners include Bruno Bagbeni (former general manager at Fraiche and Bastide), as well as Joe Russo (the film and television director).
Despite all the high-caliber talent, don't expect Simone to be stuffy.
"I'm departing from my fine-dining background in some ways, and going a much more casual route," Largey told the Times last year. "For me, it's important that I build a restaurant that I would go eat at all the time."
A recent preview dinner of the restaurant's opening menu included red lentil hummus with plums, tomatoes, and cucumbers; burrata and sliced melon drizzled with a melon and onion reduction; and succulent fried chicken breaded and crisped to perfection.
As the Times further revealed, the space (located one building over from Urth Cafe in the Arts District) will most likely include a butcher room, a wine cellar, a rooftop garden, and even a six-seat chef's counter for a special tasting menu.
"I think it will be great to offer these special menus that have very intricate techniques and ingredients for people who want to come in and have that type of experience," Largey concluded to the Times. "But also offer a way for [diners at Simone] to come in randomly on a Wednesday night and order one entree, and that’s all they have."
Simone will be located at 449 South Hewitt Street in the Arts District.
