Chef Adam Higgs Selling Acadia Bistro

After 25 years as a chef, more than 10 of which were at the helm of Acadia Bistro on NE Fremont, chef-owner Adam Higgs is stepping away from the stove to pursue a new career in distilling.

He's selling the restaurant to his sous chef Seamus Foran, who has been working with Higgs at Acadia for eight years. Foran, a Portland native, was the creator of Acadia's popular "Hogtoberfest" pop-up dinners last fall. According to a press release, he plans to "stay true to the regional Creole and Cajun menu that has been in place since Higgs took ownership in 2004, maybe with a few experiments thrown in now and again, punctuated by his discoveries on last year's research trip to New Orleans."

As for Higgs, who has long been a spirits enthusiast and who has curated one of the best absinthe collections in town, he's planning to dive deep into distilling and is already looking for a place to launch a distillery. Until the change of ownership takes place August 1st, Higgs will step back from the kitchen and manage the front of the house while Foran takes on the head chef role.