Remember the news about Guenter Seeger closing his restaurant to relocate to a Michelin-friendly town? Seems a banker, a couple chefs and dedicated customers changed his mind. I’ve posted the charming story of the press release.
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Read it all (to better compare and contrast to any subsequent news stories) after the jump.
It was much like a scene out of a fairy-tale. Once upon a time — actually it was last week — a diner comes into Seeger’s Restaurant to enjoy a final farewell meal before the restaurant closes forever. The gentleman was immediately impressed, all over again, and summons Chef Seeger to his table and says, “Come see me tomorrow and let me see what I can do for you.” The diner, you see, was James C. Miller Jr., Chairman of Fidelity Bank in Atlanta, and he worked out an arrangement with Seeger’s Restaurant for it to remain open and with Seeger at the helm. “Seeger’s is a great treasure for Buckhead, Atlanta and Georgia and we cannot just let him slip away from us,” stated Mr. Miller.
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“I guess my bid for a Michelin star will have to wait,” noted Guenter Seeger after announcing that Seeger’s Restaurant will not close as originally announced. “It is more important that I remain at Seeger’s and continue to serve a community which has so profoundly supported me during my last 22 years here.”
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Apparently, Atlanta— and the culinary world at large — just wouldn’t let Guenter Seeger go quietly. The restaurant received hundreds of letters from fans urging him not to close. Diners drove from as far away as Kentucky and Myrtle Beach to savor a last meal. The Honorable Shirley Franklin, Mayor of Atlanta, had a note personally delivered to Seeger saying that it would be “a personal detriment to the city” if he would leave. Governor Sonny Perdue expressed similar sentiments.
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Chefs Daniel Boulud (Restaurant Daniel and DB Bistro in NYC) and Patrick O’Connell (The Inn at Little Washington), both Relais Gourmand chefs who were inducted along with Chef Seeger, made personal visits to the restaurant to rally Seeger to stay. Daniel recounted the time when he was in Washington, DC, over 25 years ago, along with Guenter Seeger and Jean-Louis Palladin — two chefs whom he deemed changed the dining scene in America forever due to their European culinary influences that inspired adventurous cuisine and the use of fresh local ingredients. Daniel believes these two gentlemen set the standard for all great chefs of today and while Chef Palladin is no longer with us, Chef Seeger continues to set the standard with his adventurous style that is more innovative than many of the younger chefs coming of age today. Guenter Seeger has “perfect taste, perfect precision, and perfect design on a plate,” noted Chef Boulud.
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In honor of his commitment to the city and to thank everyone for their show of support, during the month of September, Seeger’s Restaurant will be offering a “Friends & Family” three-course prix-fixe dinner for $75 (the regular price is $100) exclusive of wine but including all sorts of special extras such as special little treats before dinner, an amuse bouche, and petit fours après-dinner.
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So what about that Michelin star? “I have time yet,” notes the 57-year-old Seeger. “Perhaps I will be the first chef to achieve a Michelin-star at 70! That may just another reason why one should believe in Fairy godmothers and godfathers.”
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For reservations at Seeger’s Restaurant, call (404) 846-9779. Hours of operation are Tuesday through Saturday for dinner and Friday and Saturday for lunch.
FAIRY GODFATHERS REALLY DO EXIST…AND ESPECIALLY FOR GUENTER SEEGER
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