Lots of shuffling in the Louisville dining scene!

In addition to Bobby Benjamin returning to Louisville to open his own restaurant as mentioned in the previous thread there are several other major changes coming. Russell Kook the executive chef at 8up his leaving and returning to Chicago and Len Stevens (formerly of L&N wine bar) is also leaving his position as a general manager there. Levon Wallace is also leaving Proof on Main. Here's the article from Insider Louisville with more details http://insiderlouisville.com/lifestyle_culture/dining/chef-shuffle-la-coops-bobby-benjamin-leaves-falls-city-open-new-restaurant/

Thats really disheartening to hear about 8Up. My wife and I, and every one of my friends we sent there loved it. With Len's guiding hand as GM the service was top notch, and Russell and the staff in the kitchen were doing amazing things.

Didn't take Russel long to abandon ship.

Deleted by poster. Guilty of posting before 3rd cup

OK, then, so does it become just the generic hotel dining room? Pity.

OK, then, so does it become just the generic hotel dining room? Pity.

That's exactly what my first thought was! Hopefully it won't be the case but they certainly lost a lot of the pizzazz that made it great at opening. Between Len's picking of the wine list and focus on excellent service and Russell's menu and control of the kitchen it's going to be a hard team to replace adequately.

Didn't take Russel long to abandon ship.

The whole situation seems kind of kooky. Maybe there's a backstory.