John Cain, the General Manager at Truffles for about as long as there's been a Truffles, has left the Ladue institution to become the sommelier at Annie Gunn's. Last Saturday was his final day and look for him on the floor at Annie Gunn's starting this Thursday....no rest for the eager.
Beginning March 1, the new GM at Truffles will be Brian Lipa, former GM of Niche. Lipa will share floor, service, and wine duties with Adam Marino, Cain's former assistant. The latter is a big job, as Truffles has won several consecutive "Best of" Award of Excellence plaudits from Wine Spectator, a plaudit bestowed on restaurants that "typically offer 400 or more selections, along with superior presentation, and display either vintage depth, with several vertical offerings of top wines, or excellent breadth across several wine regions."
Truffles has certainly been front and center in the news of late: John Griffiths came on board in October as Exec Chef/chief visionary, armed with a new, market-driven, fresh-focused menu (yes, I'm tired of the terminology, too) and new dinner-only hours. According to Griffiths, "lunch was never strong" (as in the case in many higher-end restaurants), and opening only five nights a week allows the stability of having a stable, single staff. And come Spring, there will be some freshness added to the decor as well. The hot-handed Tom Niemeier of SPACE is leading that charge.
In its February "Best Burger/Jerry Berger" issue (ON NEWSSTANDS NOW), SLM gave accolades to Truffles' Piedmontese beef bistro burger. SLM's lead critic Dave Lowry took notice--his critique of Truffles' new menu will appear in the April SLM.
My guess is that Griffiths and Lipa will use more social media to address what Griffiths termed "a need for better messaging." The website has already changed, including the posting of a daily menu.
The P-D's Joe Bonwich has additional details here.
