July 10--Dana Cree, two-time James Beard Foundation nominee for Outstanding Pastry Chef, is leaving Blackbird (619 W. Randolph St., 312-715-0708).
"This was not an easy decision to make by any stretch of the imagination," Cree said. "This is a wonderful company to work for. I've had an incredible team of young talent under me, and fostering their growth has been one of the most rewarding experiences I've ever had."
Cree is joining 1871 Dairy, which has grass-fed cows and is reintroducing dairy production to Chicago. The company, whose products already can be found at Eataly and Publican Quality Meats, is building a dairy-processing facility west of the Loop.
As part of her partnership with 1871 Dairy (the name references a famous cow incident in Chicago), Cree will be expanding her Hello My Name Is line of gourmet ice cream.
"I will be developing other products for the company as well," Cree said. "There will be a retail portion built into the facility. We want to share as much knowledge as we can about what we're doing, keep everything transparent and excite people about the milk we make."
Cree will remain at Blackbird through Aug. 15; after a two-week vacation, she'll start with the dairy Sept. 1.
"The wonderful thing about (Blackbird) is that it's this amazing creative platform," said Cree, who has been with the restaurant for three years. "I think of my job as a custodial position; I treat it like an incubator, and when it's time to move on, someone else takes over."
Phil Vettel is a Tribune critic.
