•Nathan Beauchamp, chef de cuisine at 1789, is leaving his post at the Georgetown institution this summer. “It’s disappointing, but he’s restless,” says Clyde’s Restaurant Group corporate chef John Guattery, who oversees Beauchamp and the other chefs under the Clyde’s-owned umbrella. Guattery says Beauchamp is contemplating a move to the West Coast, possibly Seattle. “ I do think he’ll stay in restaurants,” Guattery says. “I think it’s truly in his heart. Although I think like all of us in restaurants, there are days when you really don’t want to do this anymore.” Guattery is searching for a replacement, and as of now, Beauchamp’s last day is slated to be June 17. So get his versions of steamed clams with chorizo and steak tartare while you can.
•Lots of foodie stuff to do this weekend: Savor: An American Craft Beer & Food Experience is at the Mellon Auditorium tonight and tomorrow; the Food & Wine Festival at National Harbor runs tomorrow and Sunday.
Also on Sunday, Indique and Indique Heights chef KN Vinod will hold a cooking demonstration from 11 AM to noon as part of the “Chef at Market” program at the Dupont Circle FreshFarm market (20th St. between Massachusetts Ave. and Q St., NW); Taste of Wheaton, with $1 samples from over 20 local restaurants, runs from 11 AM to 5 PM at the corner of Grandview Avenue and Reedie Drive; and Taste of Arlington, with $2 samples from 45 restaurants, is at Ballston Common Mall and Wilson Boulevard from noon to 7:30.
•And a very sad closing note: On May 14, hospitality and restaurant PR executive Joan Hisaoka died after a recurrence of cancer. Hisaoka, 48, was the founder of Hisaoka Public Relations, which represents such restaurants as Oceanaire Seafood Room, Taberna del Alabardero, and Charlie Palmer Steak, and handles PR for events like the RAMMY awards. A University of Maryland graduate, Hisaoka was the past president of the Les Dames d’Escoffier organization, a member of Mensa, and a martial arts aficionado. According to her firm’s Web site, she also loved to travel (she explored the Galapagos Islands and visited shamans in Macchu Picchu), and a photo shows her happily swimming with dolphins.
Ann Limpert joined Washingtonian in late 2003. She was previously an editorial assistant at Entertainment Weekly and a cook in New York restaurant kitchens, and she is a graduate of the Institute of Culinary Education. She lives in Petworth.
