Union Conflict Rumored as L'Atelier Takes Its Final Bow

At the end of the week, one of New York's fine dining heavy hitters, L'Atelier De Joel Robuchon, will close for good. When the news broke last month, Robuchon's camp and the Four Seasons issued a joint statement that noted that the split was amicable. But now, Gael Greene hears that issues with the hotel union are partly to blame. An anonymous Robuchon staffer tells Ms. Greene, "with the union your hands are tied up.”

Elsewhere in the Robuchon universe, the chef recently lost one of his right hand men, Phlippe Braun, who is leaving the restaurant group to open his own place in Toulouse, France. His replacement is Yosuke Suga, who was the executive chef at the Four Seasons.

Robuchon still says that he will return to the NYC dining world, but it sounds like that won't happen anytime soon.
· It was the union that sent Joël Robuchon Fleeing [Insatiable Critic]
· All Coverage of Joel Robuchon [~ENY~]
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