Joe Schafer, who has been running the kitchen at Bacchanalia, James Beard award-winner Anne Quatrano’s fine-dining staple, since November 2015, is moving on for a new gig in the sports industry. Schafer has accepted a position as executive chef for the Atlanta Hawks, Quatrano confirms.
It isn’t clear what, exactly, will be Schafer’s role with the Hawks, but he takes the gig as the local NBA team’s home, Philips Arena, is undergoing a major renovation. A tipster tells Eater Atlanta the arena’s food options will be drastically upgraded from standard sporting-venue fare.
Quatrano announced Jonathan Kallini as Bacchanalia’s new executive chef in an Instagram post Wednesday night. Kallini was promoted from within.
“Jonathan, as chef de cuisine, has been driving our menu for the past four years,” Quatrano tells Eater Atlanta. “He deserves and is more than prepared to take over the kitchen. He has a passion for cooking and an expansive technical expertise. He has been instrumental in revamping our fermented bread program.
“He also has a great team to support him: pastry chef Carla Tomasko (who has been with us over 10 years) and sous chefs Nick Alvarez and Evelyn Ling.”
Bacchanalia, along with Quatrano’s Star Provisions, recently moved into a new home on Ellsworth Industrial Boulevard after operating out of Westside Provisions District since 1999. Eater Atlanta has reached out to Schafer for more information on his new job.
• Little Bacch Chef Joe Schafer Is Taking Over the Bacchanalia Kitchen [EATL]
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