Big-name chef’s catering company takes over Fort Worth art museum cafe
California celebrity chef Wolfgang Puck’s namesake catering company will take over Cafe Modern at the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth, according to a state liquor permit application.
Wolfgang Puck Catering is best known locally for the Nasher Cafe at the Nasher Sculpture Center in Dallas. The company also operates the Perot Museum Cafe at the Perot Museum of Nature & Science in Dallas, along with several event catering halls.
The Modern has yet to officially announce any change at its popular restaurant, but a spokesperson for California-based Bon Appetit, the former operator, confirmed its departure in January after 19 years.
Both companies are part of North Carolina-based Compass Group. Puck, 80, is not directly involved.
Cafe Modern, a perennial Fort Worth brunch favorite and home of countless holiday dinners and wedding receptions, has been closed since a mid-2020 spike in COVID-19 cases.
Former chef Denise Shavandy, winner in February of an episode on the Food Network show “Chopped,” has launched a pop-up dinner series, catering company and YouTube channel under the name Spork & Spice.
The restaurant was listed among the 100 Best Brunch Restaurants in America by OpenTable.com.
The restaurant in the nearby Kimbell Art Museum has reopened serving box lunches to enjoy indoors or on the open-air patio, and now also serves midafternoon tea with pastries.
This story was originally published March 24, 2021 at 5:45 AM.
