Pastry Chef Steven Cak to Launch North Austin Bagel Shop

Contigo and Gardner's executive pastry chef Steven Cak is leaving the group to strike out on his own this June. The chef tells Eater he plans to open a New York style bagel shop featuring "smoked fish, gravlax, and cured meats" in North Austin in early 2016.

Cak says he "nothing but great things to say about Andrew and Ben, and the group in general," but after years of working for other restaurant groups he is ready to strike out on his own. Before joining the Contigo/Gardner team, Cak worked with Shawn Cirkiel's Parkside Projects.

Correction: this post erroneously identified Cak amongst Gardner's opening team in a previous image