I love to think of that moment when French-trained chefs go rogue. I picture it all going down like a scene out of Ratatouille. Slamming pans against the stove, they scream and fling spare onions at their sous chefs, and in a fit of rage—or brilliance—they discover that the secret ingredient to their star dish is not the $200-an-ounce white truffle they’ve been fingering, but lo, the peasant-friendly turnip.
Or a French chef goes rogue like CIA-trained Vuong Loc—skipping over the tried-and-true and opening a high-end pizza/Asian fusion restaurant instead. Because isn’t it time foie gras pizza and chicken pho dumplings coexist on the same menu?
“I’ve always wanted a pizza place,” Loc told me. “It just sounded like a fun project where I could bring the family regularly to eat.” Fun is the operative word for the fifth venture from Vuong and wife Tricia Loc, who opened the seasonal, classic French restaurant Pomerol next door, and were behind the now-shuttered Portage, June, and Pig N Whistle. If Pomerol looks like where you’d go for an intimate date over a bottle of wine and steak frites, all dimmed lighting and cozy tables, Chinapie resembles the next stage-of-life situation where you can take the kids. The bright, airy space with white metal chairs, simple lightweight wooden tables, and an open kitchen is as child-friendly as a pizza parlor, from the high chairs in the corner to the homemade push-pops for dessert.