Check Checkers

Benoit Gateau-Cumin suggests that after Tom Keller left Checkers we haven’t heard anything about (the restaurant) (“Conversations with a Headhunter,” Jan. 20). This would seem to imply that Checkers has become a mediocre, average place to dine.

This implication needs to be corrected since Checkers is alive and well and, in my opinion as a regular patron, provides some of the best and most creative food in Los Angeles. The chef who replaced Keller, William Valentine, has done an excellent job of maintaining and even exceeding the standards set by Keller and his predecessor, Jerry Comfort.

Checkers has been featured in your own Los Angeles Times magazine. A recent issue of Gourmet featured Checkers’ Thanksgiving dinner and contained a brief interview with chef Valentine. Both the 1993 and 1994 Zagat guides have Checkers as one of the top 50 restaurants in the Los Angeles area. Checkers was also one of the top five restaurants in the guide serving California-style food and was one of the top three places for brunch in Los Angeles. It was voted one of the top romantic restaurants and also was one of the top 15 restaurants in regard to decor.

With the above in mind, it is difficult to believe that someone who claims to be in the business could state that we haven’t heard anything about Checkers since Keller left.

RICHARD S. GOWER

Los Angeles