Kitchen 713’s Iconic Shrimp and Grits Are Reborn at Chef Ross Coleman’s New Restaurant

Chef Ross Coleman, formerly of Kitchen 713, is now heading up culinary operations for the Dukessa event space near the Galleria and its newly opened lunchtime spot 2840 at Dukessa.

Coleman quietly assumed the role of head chef and co-owner of 2840 at Dukessa after the beginning of this year, taking over the kitchen from its former chef Adrian de la Cerda who departed after only two months on the job. Coleman tells Eater that a mutual friend connected him with Dukessa’s owners following the closure of Kitchen 713 last fall due to financial reasons.

Soul food offerings similar to those found at Kitchen 713 inform the menu at Dukessa, although in much lighter form. “We want to serve food that’s good for lunch,” Coleman tells Eater. “But we’re updating the menu with more modern and global fare.” To that end, Coleman will serve a lighter take on his “713” shrimp & grits made with a broth of shellfish and smoked ham rather than cream. “We got a lot of praise for that dish, and this version still has a lot of flavor,” he says.

Additionally diners will find a beef and broccoli entree made with pan-roasted 44 Farms NY strip steak, charred broccolini and crispy leeks served with a house-made hunan sauce; tandori lamb skewers served with mixed greens, cilantro chutney, and tamarind barbecue sauce (or a variant of that dish in burger form, which isn’t on the menu but people can still order it). Then there’s the creole barbecue shrimp toast with a house-made buttery bread, shrimp andouille sausage, drizzled with northern-style barbecue shrimp sauce, and topped with a fried egg; plus the beets and burrata, which Coleman characterizes as a “pretty cool, nice little salad.” Coleman aims to source everything locally too.

The chef has had his hands full between redeveloping 2840’s menu and heading up Dukessa’s banquet department, however he’s planning a five-course Valentine’s Day pop-up to road test 2840’s future dinner offerings. “Hopefully we knock that out of the park,” he says, “Then we can figure out when we can get dinner going.”

Stay tuned for more information on when to expect dinner service at Dukessa, and in the meantime, peep the new menu below.

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