Chef Scott Romano Takes Over the Kitchen at Nick & Sam’s Grill Park Cities

Scott Romano, one of the city’s most talented chefs, left Charlie Palmer’s restaurant empire late last year to join Samir Dhurandhar (also one of the city’s best chefs) and the Nick & Sam’s Steak House group. Beginning today, Romano will be running the kitchen at Nick & Sam’s Grill Park Cities, the popular Preston Center casual steakhouse concept.

Charlie Palmer alum Richard Blankenship is packing up his knives (and considerable talent) and moving back to the Joule Hotel, where he once worked with Romano at Charlie Palmer. The Joule is finishing its rehab and unwrapping its new restaurant, American F&B, an updated casual concept patterned on The Porch, in Dallas, and Westside Tavern, in L.A. (Both are owned by Consilient Restaurants, which is now co-owned by Joule owner Tim Headington and founder Tristan Simon.) American F&B replaces the previously heralded CBD Provisions, the “energetic American eatery” once announced for the space.

I loved Nick & Sam’s Grill Park Cities when it first opened, but lots of Hatch readers have told me the kitchen has been off-point recently. Romano will fix that. Plus, he’ll inject the Grill with elements of the culinary flair that made Charlie Palmer one of the Hatch’s top-rated restaurants in Dallas — I’m particularly looking forward to his house made extruded pastas, agnolotti and spectacular steaks (he says the secret is his dry rub).