Longtime chef D.J. Olsen leaving Lou

This article was originally on a blog post platform and may be missing photos, graphics or links. See About archive blog posts.

D.J. Olsen, the popular longtime chef at Lou wine bar near Hancock Park, is leaving the restaurant. This is not unexpected, since founder and original owner Lou Amdur recently sold the place to a new owner, Troy Stevens. Olsen says he’s given notice with a final day of June 7.

Olsen is widely regarded as one of the most farmers-market friendly of the local chefs, appearing on a weekly basis at several local markets and buying much of the restaurant’s produce there.

‘For six years I’ve had the great luxury of freedom at Lou,’ Olsen wrote in an email. ‘My kitchen became a kind of personal laboratory, a place where I was free to explore whatever I liked, to develop my own peculiar brand of market-driven cuisine. Now with the ownership change, the timing seems right to step away and do something for myself.’

ALSO:

Behind the scenes at the Beards

One-night stand at Beer Belly

Dessert tastes better with a gold spoon?

--Russ Parsons