December 22, 2015 – Top chef James Anderson has left Carmel’s trendy Affina restaurant, which he helped open in August of last year.
“James resigned last Friday,” confirmed co-owner/chef Nico Izard. “He’s really talented and a great guy, we wish him all the best.” Anderson said he needed a break after 12 years in the restaurant business in Carmel. “I’ve been working non-stop since I was 16 and haven’t taken more than two weeks off in the past 12 years, so I want to take some time to develop new projects and figure out what I want to do next,” he said.
Topping the list of new projects is developing a concept and opening his own restaurant. “As a chef you always want to push your own agenda,” he said. “It would be a shame not to try to do it myself.” He hopes to have his restaurant concept ready to roll out sometime next year.
In the meantime he is helping test recipes and source sustainably-grown fresh produce with his friend Joey Nguyen who is opening the Poke Lab in downtown Monterey next month. See EMB story here.
He is also hoping to put on a couple of pop-up dinners in the Monterey area in the next few months and to continue his generous collaborations with community groups.
Primarily, Anderson plans to relax through the rest of the winter, visiting with family and getting out in nature to do some hiking.
Prior to Affina, Anderson worked as chef de cuisine at La Bicyclette, as executive sous chef at Casanova and in the kitchen at the Pebble Beach Company, where he started as an intern.
About the author
Deborah Luhrman is publisher and editor of Edible Monterey Bay. A lifelong journalist, she has reported from around the globe, but now prefers covering our flourishing local food scene and growing her own vegetables in the Santa Cruz Mountains.
