Brasserie by Niche is gearing up a bienvenue: Chef and owner Gerard Craft has hired William Fugitt as executive chef to replace Perry Hendrix, who is leaving the Central West End bistro to take a position at Custom House Tavern in Chicago.
Fugitt holds 16 years of culinary experience, including tenures at Jean-Louis Palladin at the Watergate Hotel and Equinox Restaurant in Washington, D.C.; Michel Bras Restaurant in Laguoile, France; Tru in Chicago; and Jack Nicklaus’ Country Club at Muirfield Village in Dublin, Ohio. Most recently, Fugitt has been collaborating on dinners with farmer Lee Jones, owner of The Chef’s Garden in Huron, Ohio. Fugitt will take up his new role on July 7.
In a conversation last evening with Sauce, Craft expressed his excitement about Fugitt’s credentials and experience with French cuisine, but noted that the switch did not mean that Brasserie’s menu would be changing any time soon. “We’re not going to go in and flip anything. This is a menu that we created based off of dishes we love, and French cooking. We’ll keep things moving forward,” stated Craft.
“There is no negativity between me and Perry,” he added. “We have a lot of respect for Perry and the choices he has to make for his family. He got a great offer, and we have an amazing replacement.”
One of Fugitt’s first endeavors will be to assist Craft with the charity event Share Our Strength’s A Tasteful Pursuit, to be held at Brasserie by Niche on July 27. For this affair, top chefs from the Midwest will gather to create a multicourse menu paired with fine wines and beers.
– Ligaya Figueras
This article appears in Jun 1-30, 2010.