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DOUG TURBUSH ASSEMBLES TOP-SHELF TEAM FOR DRIFT FISH HOUSE & OYSTER BAR
Executive Chef Brendan Keenan, Director of
Operations Jason Raymond and Bar Manager Jose Pereiro Help Launch New Seafood
Destination at The Avenue East Cobb
ATLANTA (Feb. 4, 2016) – Doug Turbush did
not have to look far to find the talent he wanted for his newest restaurant, Drift Fish House &
Oyster Bar. The chef/restaurateur
has stocked his forthcoming East Cobb venture with longtime team members
Brendan Keenan, Jason Raymond and Jose Pereiro, who all previously contributed
to the success of his other Marietta restaurants, Seed
Kitchen & Bar and
Stem
Wine Bar. Although they have very different backgrounds within
the hospitality industry, this management staff shares a very important trait
with their respected leader: a passion for providing impeccable service and
introducing guests to new culinary experiences.
Brendan Keenan has been serving as chef de
cuisine at Turbush’s Marietta restaurants since 2011. A graduate of the
Culinary Institute of America in New York, his formative years were spent out
West learning from some of the industry’s top talents, like James Beard Award-winning chefs Michael Mina at Aqua
and Julian Serrano at Masa’s in San Francisco. A move to Atlanta
brought Keenan to Woodfire Grill, The
Sound Table and Bluepointe, which is where he first met Turbush and later
reconnected for the opening of Seed.
“I have known Brendan for many years, and I
trust him implicitly not only for his ability to create dishes that are both
approachable and exciting, but also for his commitment to trying new techniques
and flavors,” says Turbush. “From the very start, Brendan has been a major
component of the high-quality dining experience that has made Seed and Stem
successful.”
Turbush and Keenan plan to showcase the best
seafood species that the East and Gulf Coasts have to offer at Drift. The menu
of creative seafood dishes includes shareable plates and raw bar items as well
as larger-format entrées. Offerings range from oven-roasted clams, chilled
seafood platters and a selection of crudos to a variety of po’ boys and lobster
rolls and entrées such as wood-grilled whole fish and rib-eye. Keenan also
plans to put a new twist on classic seafood dishes like oysters Rockefeller and
will use his extensive travels as inspiration for creating exotic flavor
profiles and playful nightly specials at the new restaurant.
Joining
Keenan in executing Turbush’s vision of a chef-driven restaurant with an
approachable menu, modern cocktails and craft beer and wine are director of
operations Jason Raymond and bar manager Jose Pereiro.
Raymond
was born into hospitality management - his parents were restaurant owners - and
also gets to indulge in his passion for wine as Drift's sommelier. “My job
allows me to fill several roles that I really enjoy," Raymond says.
"Training staff in the ways of genuine hospitality is very rewarding. I
also love the entertainment value of wine; the way it brings people together.”
Raymond’s
formal hospitality career began in 2002 after he earned a bachelor’s degree in
hotel management and a master’s degree from Switzerland's Centre International
de Glion. He spent three years as a private dining and restaurant manager at
the Boca Raton Resort & Club in West Palm Beach, Florida, before moving to
The Breakers, where he discovered his passion for wine under the tutelage of
master sommelier Virginia Philip. “That’s really where I fell in love with
wine,” he says.
In
2008, Raymond opened the City Fish Market in Boca Raton for the Buckhead Life
Group before relocating to Atlanta to become the beverage manager for
Bluepointe. A year later, he was hired by Turbush and finally got the
opportunity to combine his management experience with his knowledge of wine as
general manager and sommelier for Seed Kitchen & Bar and Stem Wine Bar.
At
Drift, Raymond plans to focus heavily on whites and lighter reds to complement
the seafood, along with “some really cool sparkling wines by the glass,” he
says. He looks forward to broadening guests’ horizons when it comes to trying
different varietals and removing the intimidation that diners often feel when
tasting something new.
Complementing
Raymond’s passion for wine is bar manager Jose Pereiro’s fervor for the art of
mixology. He became acquainted with the hospitality industry while bartending
in Venezuela. In 2006, he moved to the United States and began working at Rosa
Mexicano in Atlanta, where his manager soon recognized Pereiro’s strong
knowledge of and passion for spirits and placed him in a head bartender role at
the restaurant’s new Miami location. Once in Miami, Pereiro became an active
member of the craft cocktail scene, joining the U.S. Bartender’s Guild and
participating in bartending competitions.
He
continued to hone his craft cocktail knowledge and soon joined the bartending
staff at Seed Kitchen & Bar. The
cocktails he crafted for the Marietta restaurant won first place at the 2012
Remy V cocktail competition and the 2014 Fernet-Branca cocktail competition in
Miami as well as the 2015 Ketel One Master of the Mule competition in
Atlanta.
Pereiro is now bringing his talents to Drift, developing a complex craft cocktail program built
around top-notch spirits and
ingredients of the same superb quality as those found
in the restaurant's cuisine.
Drift is opening in February for nightly
dinner service, with lunch and brunch service to follow at a later date. The
restaurant is located in The Avenue East Cobb at 4475 Roswell Road in
Marietta. For more information, visit driftoysterbar.com.
Updates can also be found on Facebook and Twitter.
Click here for a photo of the
team (credit: Emily Schultz).
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