Changes Abound in the 50 Eggs Family

Last Friday news broke out that Chef Bee of Khong River House was no longer with the restaurant. He's gone back Oishi Thai, the eatery he opened several years back, where he will be spending some time cooking with his mom. Shortly after this, Short Order also got word of yet another surprising departure: chef Jeff McInnis of Yardbird Southern Table & Bar. Here's what 50 Eggs' founder John Kunkel had to say about both Khong and Yardbird:

Khong River House has always had a talented team of chefs trained in traditional Thai cooking methods tirelessly working behind the scenes. While Chef Bee handled interviews about the culinary program on behalf of Khong, our recipes are proprietary and belong to the restaurant and our family of chefs at Khong. Chef Bee was no longer acting as part of the family and so we have parted ways with him. The foundation of the culinary concept at Khong, and at all of our 50 Eggs restaurants, has always been centered around a family of chefs. None of our restaurants are driven by a single individual and we have never looked to a single individual for our success or failure. Instead, we support and empower the 100's of talented employees that makeup 50 Eggs Inc. We are a loyal, hardworking team. Bottom line is, the focus for us is to always ensure our guests have the best possible experience. That's never going to change.

As far as McInnis' decision to leave Yardbird, Kunkel says McInnis left to "take some time with his family". He also says, "we support him in this mutual decision to take some time for himself and his family and look forward to possibly doing another project with him in the future".

Meanwhile, stepping in for McInnis is chef Clay Miller, former executive chef "at Wit & Wisdom, a Tavern by Michael Mina". Kunkel says, "Clay is a rare culinary talent, and as Yardbird enters its third year of business, he is precisely the type of chef that will take our success to the next level."
· Jeff McInnis Departs Yardbird Southern Table & Bar [SO]
· All Coverage of Jeff McInnis on Eater [ ~EMIA~ ]
· All Coverage of Chef Bee [ ~EMIA~ ]