If you remember, DeSanto Latin American Bistro was reviewed negatively by both me and Laura over at the Times after they opened, so owner Doug Illman made the surprisingly smart move of closing the restaurant and hiring local super-chef Jeannie Pierola to come in and re-do the menu and train the staff to improve quality. Early returns I received from friends and readers were overwhelmingly positive. Not surprising, considering Jeannie's talents and Latin food skills.
But wait. This weekend I received an email from a reader who has been frequenting DeSanto of late. Here's what he said:
"Ate at DeSanto last night, my 3rd meal there since JP’s arrival, blown away the first 2 times, last night – Awful. I asked what was up, they told me Jeannie was gone. Sounded like it happened all-of-a-sudden. Perhaps the owners couldn’t stand the heat (expensive ingredients) in the kitchen?"
I called over to the restaurant and they confirmed that Jeannie was gone from day-to-day operations, although she's still consulting. That's a bit sooner than the three months she was originally scheduled for, but the manager indicated that "she's got a lot of her own things going on right now." Maybe her own project is ramping up. Early rumors had her negotiating for space at downtown Tampa's Skypoint, but that hasn't been confirmed, and Jeannie's been tight-lipped about it.
As for DeSanto, we'll see if that one reader's experience was an aberration or a sign of things to come. I'll be checking it out soon.
Anyone else have a similar experience at DeSanto in the past week? Or any gossip about Jeannie's new project? Inquiring minds want to know.
This article appears in May 7-13, 2008.