Pastry Chef Tova du Plessis Out at Avance

It's been a pretty buzzy month for Avance, with multiple positive reviews coming out and a nod from national critic Alan Richman. (Notably, though, the restaurant — which opened just a few scant weeks before the end of 2013 — was not a part of the James Beard Foundation Restaurant and Chef Awards conversation.) And this week, there was one bit of less positive news smuggled into the rest of the general praise.

Toward the end of his review, City Paper's Adam Erace noted that pastry chef Tova du Plessis' "recent departure" had exec Justin Bogle doing the desserts himself at the time of Erace's review meals ("and not terribly well"). Du Plessis confirmed the change to Eater today, politely declining to give a specific reason but saying that she "never expected to be leaving Avance so soon."

No word yet on what du Plessis' next move, as she is currently taking some time to weigh a few possible job opportunities. Ultimately, she says, her dream is to open her own bakery in Philly, though she recognizes that could be a very long way off. (But given her knack for savory, cheffy desserts, Eater can't help but think that a du Plessis-run bake shop could fill a real void around here.) If you could use some more background on the pastry chef, check out this profile Michael Klein ran before the opening of Avance.[Photo: Tova du Plessis/Twitter]

UPDATED: A tipster tells Eater that GM Adam Olland was fired shortly after du Plessis' departure. Eater has not yet been able to reach Olland or Avance for confirmation.
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