SPOKANE, Wash. — Local chef Jeremy Hansen is selling all of his Spokane restaurants to take an opportunity as an executive chef at a restaurant in Philadelphia.
He’s the owner of Inland Pacific Kitchen, Smoke & Mirrors Saloon and Hogwash Whiskey Den.
Hansen made the announcement on a local podcast called ‘Amalgram’ Tuesday morning.
During his chat with podcast host Corbin Mendenhall, Hansen said he’s leaving for Philly on Aug. 5.
Hansen said he was pursued by a headhunter who said he was perfect for a job at the Philadelphia restaurant. He said he didn’t know anything about Philly. When he started doing research, he said he realized that Philly was a pretty cool place.
The restaurant invited him out a few times and eventually made him an offer. After checking with family, he made the decision to take the position. He said leaving Spokane will be bittersweet.
"For me, leaving is hard because the part we played in growing the food scene here," Hansen said in the podcast. “It's growing rapidly, and the food scene is getting better every day. It's hard to leave what I've created and leave it in the middle of this growth spurt. But I'm also proud to say that I had a part in helping it get there, along with others... I'm satisfied with what we got to do here and what the community allowed us to do, and the support we got from Spokane. Spokane, keep doing what you're doing and keep supporting the local restaurants and keep going out and buying from the chef-owned places."
Hansen said there has been a lot of interest in his restaurants. He hinted that one may already have a new owner.