What will be new in the New Year
are the primary owners: Chef Tai
Lee and his wife Christina. It’s a
pairing as perfect as a glass of
Reynolds Family Pinot Noir with
Madden’s seared smoked duck,
cornbread-apple-pecan bread
pudding, and spinach tossed in
brown butter and apricot jam.
Peter Madden: [There is] no real
transition other than the fact Tai
will be the primary…It’s been hard
to keep a lid on things [about the
sale].
Tai Lee: Our whole mission
from the get-go is, this is my
favorite restaurant outside of the
restaurants I own and operate, and
I did not want anything changed.
I love this restaurant for what it is.
I’ll be taking over a little more of
the day-to-day, become the head
figure for the back of the house…
I’ll continue to consult Peter on
how to do Madden’s the way it’s
supposed to be.
Peter: We’ve known each other
nine years; that’s a long time…I
have a lot of admiration for him,
and what he has been able to do...
[Madden’s] has defined me for
11 years, helped make me who I
am…[we] didn’t have kids when
it started; we have three now. It’s
been a huge part of my life. So, it’s
hard to let something go. I don’t
know what would have happened
[if Tai didn’t buy Madden’s]. I do
know Madden’s isn’t my future…
Mad Taco is my future…
I called Tai, and said, “Hey,
listen…”
Tai: I got a phone call...I’ve got a
deal you can’t refuse…[laughter]
Peter: I called him. We had coffee.
I said, “Would you have any
interest in taking it over?” My goal
was not letting it end or let it just
dwindle away into mediocrity.
If I was to sell it to someone else,
I don’t know that I would let the
name go. I am comfortable with
Tai having the name and the
recipes...I don’t know if I would
entrust that to someone I don’t
know.
Tai: Great shoes to fill. It just
goes back to my great memory of
dining out at Madden’s. The first
time, it was my church member
who took me out on a lunch…
Right away, I actually told the
landlord Kay Conlee the same
thing…when I got the food it was
nothing I’d seen in this town. It
was so upscale, so gourmet and so
creative…I thought, I don’t know
who this chef is, but this guy rocks.
So immediately I became a huge
fan. I’ve pledged to him, to myself,
and to the staff, that really it’s not
about transforming it to my style
of cooking because Madden’s is
unique, and I really adore the
uniqueness.
Brule…his bread and the dipping
oil, it’s simple as that…I love it.
I trust our great staff that Peter has
trained the past 11 years…I’m just
hoping to add something on top
of that to move forward…Peter’s
menu is so diverse. Even though
it is the new American with an
emphasis on the Southwestern
cooking, he has definitely
demonstrated some of the Asian
flair. One of the dishes I loved is
the sesame seared tuna with a
little soy and a little cilantro, and
I’m like, wait a minute, this is
something I would do, and Peter’s
doing it!
Peter: An interesting fact about
what’s happening in this transition
is that the person who is going
to be Tai’s sous chef here…used
to work here many years ago…
he was one of my right hands for
two or three years before he went
to work for Tai…he’s familiar
with my style. It’s going to help the
transition a lot.
AG: When was the first time you
really connected with each other?
Tai: Crab cakes and meatloaf and
southern-style fried chicken are
some of my go-to favorites here.
Desserts are great…his Crème
Tai: Wine dinner for me…
Peter: I think the food trucks
really brought us together…we