Wednesday, February 23, 2005

 

Citybeat Person of the Year - MUST READ

I must say, I haven't been overly impressed by the previous choices by CityBeat for Person/Group of the year. However, this year's selection (Jean Robert de Cavel) is right on! Everyone should read this article, because this is what it's all about to make things happen in the community. It's not about OTR vs. Downtown, or Downtown vs. Inner Suburbs, or Downtown vs. N. KY. It's about getting things done, providing excellence in what you do, and giving back to the community.

While the media has been focused on the negitive, the dangers of downtown, businesses leaving and the lack of development in the city, Jean Robert has been busy opening 4 fantastic restaurants all to rave reviews from dinning public. Jean Robert's Pigall's was the first to open, shortly after the OTR riots (as well as shortly after Jean Robert lost his infant daughter to SIDS). The restaurant is nearly impossible to get into, while it's comparable restaurat (Massionette only wants to talk about Govt Support, and finding a location outside of Cincinnati). He then opened a Bistro (JeanRo) right around the corner, also downtown, and a Vietnamese-French Restaurant in Oakley (Pho-Paris). Finally he is in final stages of his remaking of the popular WildFlour Cafe in Covington. In his spare (?!?!) time, he is a center piece for many fundraising events around the city... all this from a transplant to Cincinnati. If only we had more people like him in this city, people could spend time making dinner/shopping plans downtown, instead of worrying about why a downtown business can't survive in Cincy.

Comments:
JeanRo's the Man
 
I've been hearing about Jean-Robert for years but always assumed he was just another snooty chef at a high dollar restaurant... Until he teamed up with the Le family (of Roselawn's Vietnamese restaurant Song Long)to create Pho-Paris. My friend introduced me to Song Long a few years back. There was a time she ate there every Friday night for years on end. I was very impressed, not just with the food but with the Le family themselves. They were all very involved in the restaurant and many took the time to get to know their customers on a first name basis. When Jean-Robert started that joint venture I started thinking "hey - maybe he IS a cool guy!" Awesome article! He definitely deserves the credit!
 
Jean Robert is the Man!
 
Post a Comment

<< Home

This page is powered by Blogger. Isn't yours?