Provenance to bring creative dining concept to Raleigh

Another chef with impressive credentials has chosen Raleigh as the location to open a new restaurant.

Teddy Klopf will be executive chef at Provenance at SkyHouse, a restaurant and bar in the new high-rise condo and retail complex under construction at 308 S. Blount St. He left a year-long stint of cooking at Herons at The Umstead this month to focus on developing his creative concept and building his team for a scheduled October opening.

The 31-year-old chef has ambitious plans for Provenance, which will start with breakfast and lunch service in the downstairs bar. Upstairs, Klopf will feature a "subscription" dining option, which he says will be tailored to preferences of individual members, and themed pop-up style dinners on weekends. The latter will be something like Next in Chicago, where fans follow social media postings to jump on ticketed events.

"There is nothing else in the area doing what we will be doing. It's for people who are looking for a little more in their dining experiences," says Klopf, noting that the tasting menu-style meals will change daily based on seasonal availability. Themed events under consideration include a Don Quixote series, which will pair Spanish "wine and cuisine with elements of the fantastical," suggesting the high-tech gastronomy of the famed El Bulli.

After working as a pastry chef and certified sommelier from 2005 to 2008 at a handful of award-winning restaurants in Sante Fe, Klopf enrolled at the prestigious Culinary Institute of America. The experience allowed him opportunities to learn at top New York City restaurants, including Thomas Keller's Per Se, Eric Ripert's Le Bernadin and Daniel Humm's Eleven Madison Park. After he graduated in 2011, he cooked for two years at McCrady's, one of Sean Brock's Charleston restaurants.

"I've had a lot of extraordinary experience to learn in great kitchens," Klopf says. "But there was no question for me that Raleigh was the place where I wanted to have my own restaurant."

Klopf credits the increasingly vibrant downtown restaurant culture and accessibility to farmers as primary draws.

"I did my homework and felt that my concept would be a good fit for the area. After a year at the Umstead, I'm quite certain about it," he says. "It's a very exciting time for the food scene and the sheer bounty and excellence of local goods is incredible. In my estimation North Carolina offers one of the best and healthiest agricultural centers in the country."

This post first appeared in Indy Week.