Last night after hours, GrubStreet broke the riveting story of chef Alex Jackson -- who was affiliated with The Mission's Weird Fish, The Corner and the Upper Haight's Parada 22 -- and has been fabricating stories about himself: his Ivy League caliber pedigree, wealthy family, stint working the line at Gramercy Tavern in New York, and much more; from day one here in San Francisco. According to The Corner GM Justin Glennon, Jackson was asked to leave in August because his duplicitous ways were unraveling The Corner from the inside out. The restaurant was shut down. Owners and management took some time to undo the havoc Jackson -- who Glennon describes as a genius with numbers -- wreaked on the back and front ends of the restaurant. A private investigator is currently on Jackon's case. And his whereabouts are unknown.
Refusing to close up shop, Glennon and owner Philip Bellber have decided to operate as a venue for nightly pop-ups in the New Year. They're easing into the process with La Esquina, a South American cafe operated by The Corner's former kitchen manager Xavier Madero. Currently on offer are ceviche, soups, little salads, empanadas, braised ribs and other like dishes along with beer and wine, open seven days a week from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. "So far we've been packing them in," says Glennon. He's currently looking to fill slots in the lineup of pop-ups to roll out next year. Already slated for the party are Ken Ken Ramen, who plan to return on Thursdays after the 2010 finale tomorrow night and Parada 22 whose Puerto Rican fare will be in regular rotation on Saturdays starting in January. Glennon tells us he's also talking to Eskender Aseged of Radio Africa Kitchen and Tommy Halvorson of EAT about possible gigs. "At this point, I'm open to talking to great professionals that have a following," he adds. "So drop me a line at The Corner." If you'd like to reach Jackson, however, Glennon reckons he's hightailed it out of the city by now. It's also safe to say the Black Sheep Pub concept he "was working on" won't be happening.
· Chef Alex Jackson No Longer Involved With The Corner as Strange Allegations Emerge [GrubStreet]
[Photo: Yelp/Genevieve Y.]