Yesterday we mentioned a little rumor about Chef Pierre's possible departure from Le Cirque, where he has been in the kitchen for more than 8 years (including the hiatus between 2000 and 3.0). Today, the plot thickens: there are those who are adamant that he is leaving and there are others -- Team Maccioni -- who insist their boy isn't going anywhere. Because we blog to live and live to blog, we've mobilized a team of operatives, who will be investigating and filing reports throughout the day. As they come in to us, we'll send them back out to you.
11:45: Via email, "I"m pretty sure Pierre resigned. I can't imagine Sirio would fire him."
12:12: Via email, "Just an FYI, he didn't get fired, he resigned. He's an incredibly talented chef and great guy."
12:45: Via email, from the office of Sirio Maccioni, "He is in the kitchen downstairs at this moment doing lunch service, I promise! Pierre Schaedelin is the chef at Le Cirque."
12:50: Via phone, on a secure line from an anonymous informant, "Schaedelin is gone and it's on his terms. Happened this morning."
1:30: Via phone, from the office of Sirio Maccioni, "There is nothing to tell. He is absolutely the chef at Le Cirque. He's in the kitchen right now. No changes are projected."
2:30: A crucial question is posed: "do you know then if this means he will or won't be representing le cirque at the taste of nytimes next week?"
2:45: Via email, "Even if it's done, Sirio will probably get to dictate the press strategy. They've got a long history."
4:00: Via email, from the office of Sirio Maccioni, "Pierre is the chef at Le Cirque and will be representing us both at the Taste of New York and the Taste of Living/NY Times events next week."
IN PROGRESS...
