Jean-Robert French Restaurant Group

Don’t tell Jean-Robert de Cavel you can’t make it big in medium-sized market. The 46-year-old native of Roubaix, France, came to the U.S. at age 26 to be executive chef at Le Regence at the Hotel Plaza Athenee in New York City, where he immediately earned three stars from the New York Times. He moved to Cincinnati in 1993 to become chef de cuisine at the much-honored Maisonette, leaving in 2001 to open his own French fine-dining palace, Jean-Robert at Pigall’s. Its success led him to open three less-formal restaurants: Bistro JeanRo, Pho Paris and Greenup Cafe. Jean-Robert at Pigall’s is one of 11 restaurants in the country to earn a 29 (out of 30) score in the 2008 America’s Top Restaurants guide from Zagat.

We love these ceramic figurines. Where are they from?

All over. I’ve collected them for 25 years anything with a chef’s hat. There are 500 items, primarily salt and pepper shaker sets. Some cost 75 cents; one pair from Japan was $500. Most are on display at Pigall’s.

Do you enjoy much down time here at home?

A little. I get up at eight and spend an hour with my two-andone- half-year-old daughter, then take her to school. Then I leave the house about 10:30 a.m.

Do you go straight to Pigall’s?

It depends. My wife, Annette, manages our group. She gives me a schedule of where I have to go and what I have to do each day.

Four restaurants must keep you on the run.

They do, but I’m back at Pigall’s by mid-afternoon. I cook and spend time with guests in the evening. I usually get home by 11:30. Weekends are easier.

So you cook at home…?

Rarely. We have great staff meals here, so my wife puts some of it into plastic containers and brings it home and eats it with our daughter. Weekends we eat simple meals: the cheeses, meats, and condiments you see in this fridge.

Most Americans know your hometown, Roubaix, from the great Paris-Roubaix bike race.

Paris-Roubaix was a great holiday! As a boy, I’d go and watch the famous riders Eddy Merckx, all of them. I was crazy about bicycling then.

Still a fan?

It’s different now. Then the racers would finish and we’d ride along with them back to their hotel. Today they just jump into limos; you never see them up close.

We understand you’re involved in humanitarian work.

We do a lot for the SIDS Foundation that’s Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, because of what we went through. Our first daughter left us in 2002.

And the town has responded?

It has. After a while, a market like Cincinnati almost adopts you. They want you to be a success.

Are you surprised you ended up in Cincinnati?

Coming from France and New York, we didn’t think we’d stay. But we have very good partners, Marilyn and Martin Wade.

So what’s next for your group?

We just opened a lounge, Twist.

Sounds like a club that needs bouncers to break up fights.

No. It’s a 30-ish crowd. It’s a Eurostyle lounge next door to Pigall’s.

Now that seems more your style.

photo: Jim Callaway/ReduX plus

BY STEPFANIE ROMINE | SROMINE@ENQUIRER.COM

COVINGTON - Chalk is simple, it’s fresh and it’s bursting with energy, says the management team of the new restaurant that opened Tuesday night at 318 Greenup St.

It’s kitschy gourmet comfort food, pastry chef Summer Genetti said quickly and with a laugh.

Expect fresh food that’s simply done, with a menu that changes frequently and with the season, in a casual, down-to-earth environment, said chef Jared Whalen.

“That’s the whole ‘chalkboard’ philosophy. Erase (a dish) and add another,” said Whalen, who, like Genetti, had been with Pho Paris since it opened in 2004 in Oakley, before moving to Covington.

Chalk Food + Wine - the latest restaurant from chef Jean-Robert de Cavel, Annette Pfund-de Cavel, and Marilyn and Martin Wade - opened in the same location as Pho Paris, the French-Vietnamese fusion restaurant that closed on New Year’s Eve.

From the pot-rack-and-kitchen-utensils chandelier in the bar to the papier-mâché head of garlic suspended from the dining-room ceiling, Chalk’s whimsy is evident.

Chalk’s food is made from scratch and from local and organic products whenever possible. Because it’s January, not much of the produce is local; but by summer at least 85 percent of it will be locally grown, Whalen said.

Manager Bryant Phillips, Whalen and Genetti had “a fair amount of latitude” when it came to décor and menu, with plenty of input from the owners, said Phillips. They, de Cavel and others have worked round the clock since Jan. 1 to transform Pho Paris to Chalk.

“It really was a group effort,” said Whalen.

The result is a no-fuss menu with as much personality as those who put it together. Entrées (dubbed “Eat Us”) are simply called Cow #1 (a filet with pearl onions and carrots, $22); duck (hung duck and orange, $17); and scallops (orzo and spinach, $17), for example. Sides (”Friends”) cost $6 or less and are meant to be shared.

Sweets - including a flight of cupcakes - are “very classic American desserts brought up to date in a contemporary fashion,” said Genetti. “It’s food you want to eat.”

Food is only half the story at Chalk. A side room is being converted into a retail wine store that will focus on boutique wineries, said Phillips.

He said the wine store should be open within a month.

The restaurant will focus on “food-friendly” wines by the glass, in line with menu prices, he said. Most glasses run $7-$9.

Chalk opens for lunch today and will be open weekdays at 11:30. Chalk will open at 5:30 for dinner on Saturdays.

The Jean-Robert French Restaurant Group also owns Jean-Robert at Pigall’s, Twist Lounge at Pigall’s and JeanRo Bistro in downtown Cincinnati, along with Greenup Café in Covington. An Over-the-Rhine project, Lavomatic Café, is expected to open by spring.

Covington, KY – Jean-Robert’s Group welcomes a new food destination on Greenup Street. Pho Paris will close after New Year’s Eve and is planning to reopen to the public on Tuesday, January 15th as Chalk Food + Wine.

Chalks’ menu will be based on our approach to comfort food, with a whimsical touch. “I wanted something a bit more casual and approachable for the guests.  I believe this concept will satisfy everyone’s expectations,” de Cavel said. This new venture is a strong collaboration with our existing team, Chef Jared Whalen and his kitchen brigade, Pastry Chef Summer Genetti, Manager/Sommelier Bryant Phillips and his front of the house staff, which have made Pho Paris’s reputation as one of the best destination restaurants in Cincinnati.

Chalk Food:
The menu will feature Starters (selection for cold and hot appetizers) from $5-11, Hand Food (sandwiches) and Eat Us (selection of main entrée) from $6.5 to $28, Friends (side dishes) from $5-7 and Sweets (selection of desserts) from $5-8.

Chalk Wine:
The wine approach will be a huge part of Chalk. The front side room will be turned into a wine room – cellar style with a selection of international wines concentrating on small production/artisanal wines at retail pricing for every budget, for take-out or to be consumed in the restaurant with a minimal corkage fee. The wine list in the dining room will focus on intense selection of glass pours. The wine room will also be available for wine tastings as well as to be booked as a private room for up to 16 people. The Chalk team will work on wine dinners and pairings to please everyone.

The new look of 318 Greenup Street will have a feel of a neighborhood eclectic, whimsical place where people can gather anytime of the week to share some wonderful dishes or experience an interesting selection of wine. Chalkboard will be placed in the room with some art by local artists. The feel will be very comfortable to every one. “Having such a passionate team as Jared, Summer, Bryant and their staff who care about their craft and the dedication to please the guest the best possible, I am so excited to be part of this new concept and wish our Chalk team good luck Having our partners Martin and Marilyn Wade invested in Covington on Greenup Street, we’re so pleased to be able and pleased to bring a new food and wine destination to this neighborhood. We’re waiting to serve you, Cheers, Santé, See you in mid January” says de Cavel.

… a year of milestone celebrations just got sweeter for restaurateur Jean-Robert de Cavel: on Oct. 24, Zagat Survey named Jean-Robert at Pigall’s one of 11 top restaurants in the country. (from Downtowner)
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Zagat likes Jean-Robert

THE ENQUIRER, Oct. 24th, 2007

Jean-Robert at Pigall’s is one of 11 top-rated restaurants in the United States, according to the 2008 Zagat Survey of America’s top restaurants.

The Zagat guide, covering 1,416 eateries in 42 major markets, is based on 23 million meals experienced by over 132,000 surveyors.

“It’s wonderful to be recognized as one of the top restaurants in the country and Cincinnati,” Owner and Chef Jean-Robert de Cavel said Wednesday morning, just minutes after learning of the survey results.

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America’s Tops: Eleven restaurants in this year’s survey earned a near perfect 29 out of a possible 30 for food, including: Atlanta - Bacchanalia; Charlotte - Barrington’s; Chicago - Carlos’; Cincinnati - Jean-Robert at Pigall’s; Connecticut - Thomas Henkelmann; Dallas/Ft. Worth - French Room; Milwaukee - Sanford; New Jersey - Nicholas; San Francisco - Gary Danko; Washington, DC - Inn at Little Washington; Westchester/Hudson Valley, NY - Xaviar’s at Piermont. Zagat includes the top five places for food and popularity in each of the 42 cities it covers in this year’s guide.

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