Chef Brian Landry Departs Borgne, the Restaurant He Opened With John Besh

Chef Brian Landry and BRG Hospitality (formerly Besh Restaurant Group) have amicably split, with Landry selling back his shares in Borgne, the seafood mecca in the Hyatt hotel evoking the outdoorsy culture of Southeast Louisiana he opened with John Besh in January 2012, according to a statement released today.

Just a couple months after the highly publicized sexual harassment allegations at Besh’s restaurant group broke, Landry and Emery Whalen, both who worked with Besh for years, spun off the hotel arm of BRG Hospitality (called Our House Hospitality), to form QED Hospitality. Landry is chef and partner in the new company.

Landry and Whalen took with them the restaurants in the Pontchartrain Hotel, including the Caribbean Room (now the Jack Rose), the Silver Whistle cafe, and the Hot Tin rooftop bar, and the two eateries in the Thompson Nashville hotel, including Marsh House.

But, BRG kept Domenica in the Roosevelt and — notably — Borgne in the Hyatt, where Landry was executive chef and partner. So, it’s really no surprise that Landry has left Borgne to focus entirely on QED.

“Brian Landry has been a great partner. He is a wonderful chef, and an even better person. We will miss him, and we wish Brian continued success with QED Hospitality,” Shannon White, CEO of BRG Hospitality, said in a statement. “We are grateful to Brian for his contributions to BRG over the past 8 years and for setting Borgne up for great success in the years to come.”

• John Besh Restaurants Fostered Culture of Sexual Harassment, 25 Women Say [NOLA.COM]
• Pontchartrain Hotel’s Restaurants Break Off From Besh Restaurant Group [ENOLA]
• Besh Restaurant Group Is Now Called BRG Hospitality [ENOLA]
• Chef John Besh on Borgne, Now Open Inside the Hyatt [ENOLA]