Executive chef Ravi Kapur announced late Friday that he’ll be leaving his post at Prospect in order to spend more time with his wife and five-month-old son. “Career-wise, it’s the toughest decision I’ve had to make,” he tells the Scoop. Kapur has worked with the team from Boulevard for a decade now, eventually serving as chef de cuisine under Nancy Oakes and Pamela Mazzola at Boulevard before taking the job as opening chef at Prospect, which opened to much acclaim and immediate popularity last summer. But don’t expect much to change at Prospect as Mazzola will be assuming exec duties from Kapur — she’s a partner in the business and has actually been in the kitchen with Kapur since the restaurant opened, and has worked in tandem with Oakes for over twenty years as co-exec at Boulevard.
As we saw in a group interview last year, prior to the opening of Prospect, Kapur had very much become one of the family among the triumvirate of women — including general manager Kathy King — to the point that they all finished each others’ sentences. So it’s clear this decision was probably tough on both the familial and business levels.
Oakes plans to collaborate a bit on Prospect menus with Mazzola going forward, as they’ve done for two decades at Boulevard and as they did with Kapur prior to the Prospect opening. The well-oiled team effort having been well established, the consistency and flavors of the food are not likely to change anytime soon.
Kapur isn’t discussing any future plans as of yet.
Update: Mazzola talks to us about her immediate menu plans.
Ravi Kapur to Leave Prospect [Scoop]
Earlier: The New Bar Menu at Prospect, Illustrated
The Menu at Prospect, Illustrated
The Boulevard Team Dishes About Prospect
