Executive Chef Alex Chamberlain will open Mei this May in downtown St. Petersburg. The spot sits at 320 3rd St. South and spans 2,700 square feet. Chamberlain brings French technique with Nordic influence and Japanese ingredients. He’s leaving his post as Chef de Cuisine at Michelin-starred Kōsen in Tampa.
The restaurant splits into two sections. The Living Room holds 50 guests and serves an à la carte menu, plus an optional prix fixe experience if diners want it. The Kitchen Counter holds just eight seats. Guests get a chef-guided tasting menu there.
Chamberlain trained at Michelin-starred Beckon in Denver, learning classical French and Nordic cooking. At Mei, he’ll work with in-house fermentation and koji aging as well as dry aging. Fire-based cooking blends Nordic open-hearth methods with Japanese binchotan grilling…