John Tesar Joins DRG Concepts in Dallas as a “Corporate Culinary Leader”

Posted on March 29th, 2010 2:04pm by Nancy Nichols
Filed under Celebrity Chefs, Restaurant News
John Tesar has a new boss.

Huh? What? Hello, John? WTF is a corporate culinary leader? Is that like the chef’s version of a Boy Scout troop leader? Oh wait, here comes the news: DRG Concepts, owner of Dallas Fish Market, Dallas Chop House, Go Fish Ocean Club, and Fish Express, has hired John Tesar as one of the company’s TWO culinary leaders.

Tesar will team up with Anupam “AJ” Joglekar, the former chef at Bengal Coast, to provide culinary and operational leadership for all DRG brands. Tesar’s official title is culinary director. Joglekar is the corporate chef for DRG and execuchef for Dallas Fish Market.

Sounds vague, eh? There is more to come: DRG Concepts is planning new concepts that will be announced in a few weeks. Betcha one is all Tesar, all the time.

44 comments

  1. [...] He’s a corporate culinary leader!  FrontBurner® launched in March 2003, the first blog in Dallas run by a media organization. This is where the editors of D Magazine come to admit they used steroids — but only to recover from injury, never to enhance their performance. Search [...]

    @ 2:07 pm on March 29, 2010

  2. Holy crap.

    @ 2:09 pm on March 29, 2010

  3. I agree with Nancy. WTF!

    @ 2:38 pm on March 29, 2010

  4. This will not end well.

    @ 2:39 pm on March 29, 2010

  5. Good News! Sounds like Tesar will head ‘creative’ which is his strength while AJ will do operations. Can’t wait to see what Tesar will do with a solid company behind him.

    @ 2:44 pm on March 29, 2010

  6. WTF is EXACTLY right!?!!??!? All of their concepts are sucking wind bigtime..gotta be losing their asses and now they’re hiring Tesar and talking about opening new concepts!?!??!!? They must have an unlimited supply of cash coming from overseas in unmarked containers…..WOW

    @ 2:46 pm on March 29, 2010

  7. @ Uccello:
    The Rosewood Mansion on Turtle Creek and “David Burke Enterprises” are not solid companies?

    @ 2:47 pm on March 29, 2010

  8. Does John Tesar love fishsticks?

    @ 2:49 pm on March 29, 2010

  9. LOL! Cuz that title’s a joke, right?

    @ 3:46 pm on March 29, 2010

  10. One word: Disaster!

    @ 4:05 pm on March 29, 2010

  11. I’m starting a book: What odds am I bid on Tesar out at DRG before Christmas?

    @ 4:20 pm on March 29, 2010

  12. Worzel,whatever odds you get I’ll triple and make the GTFO date Independence Day….

    @ 4:48 pm on March 29, 2010

  13. John Tesar is an ENORMOUS step up from Randy Morgan, Tiffany Derry and Kenny Mills. Instead of ripping DRG, everyone should be thanking them for bringing in a world renowned chef to turn things around.

    @ 6:02 pm on March 29, 2010

  14. GREAT NEWS LOVE THIS GUY ! AMAZING CHEF

    @ 6:21 pm on March 29, 2010

  15. Welcome back, and can’t wait for the real Tesar restaurant.
    When ?

    @ 6:22 pm on March 29, 2010

  16. seafood lover and BIG FAN – two more of Tesar’s personalities. Welcome to the party!

    @ 6:54 pm on March 29, 2010

  17. Thrilled to have Tesar back. John’s mastery will certainly will be a huge enhancement and improvement to the mediocre fare at the nicely styled Dallas Chop House and Fish Market! Has he already started?

    @ 6:58 pm on March 29, 2010

  18. Let’s get it started – Of course he hasn’t started. Can’t you read? No one believes for a second that you’re some rabid Tesar fan who will die if he doesn’t eat his cooking again. John tesar and GF, stop the madness. Stop posting. Stop. Stop it.

    @ 7:03 pm on March 29, 2010

  19. Bug off, Tink. John Tesar was one of very few chefs to get ***** from the Dallas Morning News. Lots of us look forward to him getting back in a kitchen in Dallas. Whatever the anonymous internet haters say, this is great news for foodlovers in Dallas and Chef Tesar will prove them all wrong.

    @ 7:48 pm on March 29, 2010

  20. containers of money from overseas, check, help needed at Dallas Chop and Dallas FishMarket downtown, check, Tesar in and out by Christmas, check…

    @ 8:09 pm on March 29, 2010

  21. Tink,

    What is the reason you hate Chef in so many ways over so many days? Why do you attack anyone who likes him?
    We known who he is,but you hide in this space called Tink is that like a Taint?

    @ 8:32 pm on March 29, 2010

  22. Randy Morgan is a great guy and good chef Tesar, is a great chef and a great guy. I believe his purpose with this company is much bigger, then culinary director. Word from is old cooks that work in Houston is Burger concept followed by a fine dining rest and great partnership with Mike Hogue owner of DRG.

    @ 8:36 pm on March 29, 2010

  23. Let me get this straight two fools with fake names meet in a parking lot 6 months from now to collect on a bet about a person they don’t know anything about? Wild is this a Quentin Tarantino film?

    @ 8:40 pm on March 29, 2010

  24. Mike hogue and DRG are a gutsy, progressive company who know how important downtown Dallas is going to be in the years to come.
    While others pull back and serve chain crap, DRG is pushing for growth and quality and promoting Dallas.
    Tesar is just the experienced man to complete this vision of such a bold and fearless restaurant company. Business is business, snotty racist slurs, and Tesar haters, just sad and hopeless.

    @ 8:49 pm on March 29, 2010

  25. Tesar & Mike Hoque… this should be interesting. My money says this turns sour before the end of the year.

    @ 8:53 pm on March 29, 2010

  26. I think Tesar’s return is the best thing to happen to this town in the last year along with Bruno coming to the Mansion.
    Middle of the road steak houses and a bad fusion Indian restaurant 4 star come on Leslie and Ocean Prime?
    Finally Bruno and Tesar now we have two great chefs in our great city.
    Dallas Restaurant Group was smart to hire Tesar to raise the bar again,just like he did at the Mansion.

    @ 8:58 pm on March 29, 2010

  27. Are you aware that Tesar’s father-in law passed away this week? He will return to Dallas sometime this week and he told me to stop reading this crap and get ready to kick some A##.
    You should all be ashamed of yourselves. Seriously!

    @ 9:05 pm on March 29, 2010

  28. Uh Yeah…
    Put your money where your mouth is. How do you know what is going to happen? How do you know the two men in question? What is your point? Expand upon your knowledge.

    @ 9:10 pm on March 29, 2010

  29. C note,
    Mansion has not made money in a decade, and David Burke has more personnel and legal problems than the current economy, do your research.

    @ 9:15 pm on March 29, 2010

  30. How do I get one of these containers of money from over seas?

    @ 9:17 pm on March 29, 2010

  31. in need of money = funny
    You made me laugh!

    @ 9:36 pm on March 29, 2010

  32. city boy=Tesar (again!)

    @ 10:10 pm on March 29, 2010

  33. city boy,
    do YOUR research if you think DRG is more solid than Rosewood or Burke!

    @ 10:15 pm on March 29, 2010

  34. If I am Tesar, you must be out of your mind
    I worked for Burke and quit, don’t even know Tesar.
    My buddy works for Charlie Palmer and the word around town is Mansion has never made money so obvious. Why do you want to call me Tesar?

    @ 10:48 pm on March 29, 2010

  35. Obvious, skeptic, Jeramie, Austin how are you ?

    @ 10:50 pm on March 29, 2010

  36. Randy Morgan’s food was fantastic. Please don’t put him in the middle of the this!

    @ 5:50 am on March 30, 2010

  37. So this AJ guy? How does a chef specialized only in Indian food make the cut for corporate exec chef considering that matches none of the DRG concepts.. would have been a better fit for Tesar. Mike Hoque runs a crappy operation and treats his employees much like the same… ever talked with him? he’s your typical Dallas BS-er.. Go Fish was about to close on Saturday, and Fish Market shouldn’t be too close behind.

    @ 9:46 am on March 30, 2010

  38. People (especially staff) loved to hate Avner as he bounced around town from venue to venue, always creating fantastic food along with controversy wherever he went. It is his passion that created his problems, but he gained some wisdom and has done well while doing the town proud for several years now. John, ignore all fools who blather on here, go speak with the wise one, learn, cook, live well and prosper. Best wishes from one who has never met you, but loves great food and appreciates your bringing yours to Big D.

    @ 11:04 am on March 30, 2010

  39. Avner Samuel a role model for Tesar, Gilda? More like a cautionary tale.

    @ 11:56 am on March 30, 2010

  40. I give it four months … maybe five.

    @ 2:56 pm on March 30, 2010

  41. Yes, so John Tesar can aspire to be like Avner Samuel and not pay his employees and pureyors. Nice.

    @ 6:55 pm on March 30, 2010

  42. @Gilda – who, might I ask, the the “wise one” you encourage Tesar speak with?

    Mr. Miyagi?

    @ 7:49 am on March 31, 2010

  43. Well word on the street is DRG doesn’t pay their purveyors and employees either so…. makes sense why the good people (Jonn Boudoin and Randy Morgan) high tailed it out of there.

    @ 8:27 am on March 31, 2010

  44. Ate at Dallas Fish House on Saturday, it was the worst food and service that that I have had in the 30 years of living in Dallas, it was just awful!

    @ 11:07 am on March 31, 2010