Jared Wentworth

While perusing another thread, a poster mentioned Tizi Melloul and it reminded me of one of my favorite chefs, Jared Wentworth. I checked out the restaurant's website and he's no longer listed as chef. I'm just wondering if he's still cooking in the Chicago area. I never ate at Tizi Melloul (I don't like eating downtown), but I loved his work at Atlantique. I thought he did better work there than even J.D. Jones.

Hello All. Jared was a dear friend of mine for many years and I have long since lost contact with him. Does anybody know where to find him?

he's in Seattle, was at Quinn's and now the new chef at Ama Ama
http://www.ama-amaseattle.com/ymenus.html

OK, this is a little freaky. I wanted to check out the thread on Top Chef when I noticed a recent reply on this thread. Thank you, jshy, for the info. It just so happened I was headed last weekend for - wait for it - Seattle! Karma, baby!

Ama Ama is in West Seattle; I would compare the location to Clark and Fullerton in Chicago. Definitely a Lincoln Park-ish vibe. The restaurant is much larger than it seems from the outside. As for the decor, very dark, with dark red hues; trying a little too hard to be cool.

On to the food. It was "Happy Hour", so I tried a couple of the specials - a half dozen Pacific oysters and a Kobe beef slider. Oysters, if they aren't pristinely fresh, go right through me. Thankfully, no problem with these. They came with an interesting mignonette with capers and fresh peppercorns. I usually eat oysters straight up, but I had a couple with the mignonette. It went well.

The Kobe beef slider special came without the pommes frites on the regular menu. I'd never had Kobe beef, so I didn't know what to expect. It tasted like any other good piece of ribeye; I didn't notice anything special or different.

From the main menu, I started with the seared scallop with oxtail. The stars of this dish were the outstanding potato gnocchi and the roasted vegetables. The scallop and the oxtail were very good, though for the price ($12), I would have liked a larger scallop (it was medium/large).

My entree was the cod. Delicious. The haricot verts and the mushrooms were sensational. Again, I would have preferred a larger fillet, but it wasn't out of line for the price ($18).

For dessert, I had the bread pudding with dried cherries and caramel sauce on the side. I'm a bread pudding fanatic, and this was one of the better versions I've had. Great way to end the meal.

My server, Meghan, was attentive and efficient, in addition to being a total babe. This was a wonderfully satisfying meal that brought back memories of Atlantique in its prime. Chef Wentworth hasn't missed a beat. I go to Seattle several times a year; I wished I'd known he worked here a lot sooner. Unfortunately, next weekend will be my last trip to Seattle, maybe ever. Is that karma, too?