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Edible gold foil wraps a savory custard that is topped with caviar and bathed in crystal-clear bison consommé at Jack's Oyster House in Albany.

Jack's Oyster House in Albany.

Joshua White, left, managing partner of Jack's Oyster House in Albany, and the restaurant's former executive chef, Elliott Vogel, who left the restaurant in January 2022 after 17 months of helping revive its reputation with accomplished, beautifully presented food. 

The former service bar in the dining room at Jack's Oyster House in Albany has been renovated to seat patrons for oysters as well as the full menu. Jack's regular bar remains closed.

Mille-feuille with vanilla custard and strawberries, from on the restaurant's seven-course tasting menu in spring 2021. was inspired by toaster strudels.

A duck duo features seared breast with foie gras as part of the spring 2021 seven-course tasting menu at Jack's Oyster House in Albany. 

Hibiscus meringues dot the plate around a baklava-inspired dish separated into its components — a phyllo nest with pistachio gelato — at Jack's Oyster House in Albany in  April 2021. 

Pheasant with watermelon radish, greens and hot sauce at Jack's Oyster House in Albany.

ALBANY — The chef Elliott Vogel, who since taking over the kitchen of Jack's Oyster House in fall 2020 brought an institution long coasting on its reputation back into the top tier of regional dining with creative, delicious and beautifully presented food, has parted ways with the 109-year-old restaurant.

In a phone interview Tuesday, a week after his final shift, Vogel declined to specify a reason for his departure, saying only that it was a mutual decision. 

"Jack's is so close to my heart," he said.

He added via text message, "We were a very good team together and accomplished more than anyone believed was possible in the time we spent working together. The great things we did will always be known and we are very proud of that."

Managing partner Joshua White, who is acquiring a financial interest in the restaurant and runs it on a daily basis, confirmed Tuesday that Vogel was no longer employed by Jack's. He too said the decision was mutual.

"There was a difference of opinion as to the direction we should be going in," White said, "We all think Elliott is a phenomenal chef, and I'm not going to be the guy to slow him down."

White said he is a actively looking for the next executive chef for Jack's. He said he intends to continue the level and style of food and service established by him and Vogel over nearly a year and a half. White acknowledged that the menu, which under Vogel often featured new dishes multiple times a week, likely would evolve more slowly until a new chef takes over.  

Jack's had foundered in the years before Vogel, to the point that Susie Davidson Powell, in a 2015 review for the Times Union, wrote, "I've looked around at other guests and wondered if they, too, have peered glumly at their plates and asked themselves or each other if this is really it — the best Albany has to offer — before picking up the hefty tab."

She concluded, "Jack's may boast a venerated history and iconic style, but without quality food to justify the high prices, it's riding on the coattails of its heyday. For Albany, Jack's must do better."

When the pandemic shutdown prompted the departure from Jack's of veteran area chef Larry Schepici after nine years, a revitalization plan was begun by third-generation owner Brad Rosenstein, whose eponymous grandfather founded Jack's in 1913, and White. They started with the hiring of Vogel.

Together Vogel and White transformed Jack's, including physical renovations like building an actual oyster bar in the dining room and delivering wowing food.

Powell's visits last year resulted in a review with a headline that described a "glorious return to excellence." 

After raving about bison consommé with savory custard topped by sturgeon caviar and 24-karat gold leaf, Powell wrote, "Courses read like they're from a French royal court, with bison giving way to rare elk striploin sliced against buttery, tightly layered potato pavé, forest chestnuts and a bacon-Brussels ragout. A seared scallop with caviar rests on silky parsnip puree. Toasted almond butter and orange is its own thing, but butter and citrus bring to mind a swanky meuniere, its hue matching the salmon-pink Vidal-Fleury rosé."

Customers responded. Vogel said weekend nights would draw from 60 to 110 customers, with as many as 15 ordering the seven-course tasting menu, and holidays attracted 200 to 300 or more. (His numbers generally match what White has described in earlier conversations.)

"We always tried to top what we did the previous week. That was the mantra," said Vogel. "If it's not better than before, stay home."

Vogel said he hopes to find a senior kitchen position in the Capital Region, as he and his wife own a home locally and would like to stay in the area.   

Immediately prior to Jack's he was executive chef of Savoy Taproom in Albany. Before that he was founding chef of Daley's on Yates in Schenectady.

Steve Barnes has worked at the Times Union since 1996, served as arts editor for six years, and since 2005 has been a senior writer. He generally covers restaurants, food and the arts, and is the Times Union's restaurant columnist and theater critic. Steve was also a journalism instructor at the University at Albany for 12 years. You can reach him at sbarnes@timesunion.com or 518-454-5489.