Preux & Proper in Downtown LA Revisited

A year after opening, Preux & Proper in downtown LA is like a new restaurant. The decor is the same and the slushy machines on the ground floor are still there, but there is a new chef at the helm. Sammy Monsour came to Preux & Proper in January 2016 but is also new to Los Angeles. Raised in Raleigh, North Carolina, he went to culinary school at The Culinary Institute of America at Hyde Park in New York. He was working in Boston, learning from great chefs, and then took his art on the road, organizing pop-up events such as "Chuck Taylor’s Fried Chicken All Stars", "The Future of Junk Food" and "Antibellum". But now he has found his new home at Preux & Proper. He also brought his chef de cuisine, Steven Hacker, and sous chef, Paul Trevino who worked with him at Antibellum and kept almost all of the original staff of the restaurant. While the restaurant was first opened with a New Orleans theme, Monsour calls his menu "soul food". There is a mix of southern flavors (New Orleans, Texas, the Carolinas, Alabama) that work well together. Monsour is down-to-earth, charming and outgoing. But what shines the most is his passion for what he does. The food is focused on flavor and soul and is very very tasty!