Zeb Stevenson to leave Parish, heads to Watershed on Peachtree

Plans to slowly evolve the menu (but he’s not touching fried chicken recipe)
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Zeb Stevenson
Zeb Stevenson

James Camp Photography courtesy of Green Olive Media

Looks like more changes are in the works for Parish. Zeb Stevenson, the chef who launched a new menu and even changed the name of Parish to The Brasserie and Neighborhood Café at Parish, is leaving the Concentrics restaurant group and Inman Park on January 11. Two days later, he’ll officially take over the kitchen at Watershed on Peachtree, where which recently lost its head chef, Joe Truex. (He’s moving to Dubai to open a pizza restaurant).

Stevenson says he’ll slowly evolve the Southern menu to reflect his commitment to locality, seasonality, and technique.

“I wasn’t really looking to make a move, but I got involved in a conversation here and felt a real level of synergy with this team. We all felt it, and it felt worth pursuing,” he says. “It’s sad to leave such a great team [at Parish]. This is a long-haul venture for me. This is a place I can call home and continue to grow with.”

“It’s like meeting someone special—you just know when it’s right,” says Watershed managing partner Ross Jones. “Zeb has the drive, ambition, smarts and heart we were looking for in our next chef. And his meticulousness reminded us of Scott Peacock [opening chef at the original Watershed in Decatur].”

Stevenson says he’ll spend his first few weeks at Watershed observing. “Whatever influence I bring and whatever changes happen are going to come organically. Watershed has a great strong history—some of that has to live on,” he says.

To that regard, Stevenson will continue to serve Watershed’s famous fried chicken on Wednesday evenings, using the original Edna Lewis recipe. He’ll host wine dinners at the restaurant and aims to use them as opportunities to “stretch my legs creatively,” he says.

“We’ve built our restaurant on seasonality and locality, and Zeb has some great ideas about how to stay true to those principles while making the menu even more dynamic and current, balancing comfortable and satisfying with modern influences,” Jones says.

Meanwhile, the folks at Concentrics say they are committed to Parish’s new concept and are in talks with some of Atlanta’s “top talent.” They will be making an announcement soon.

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