Thursday, April 30, 1998 | 4:22 a.m.
Seemingly, he finally won some long-deserved recognition last month as he posed in a photograph for a local newspaper with a prestigious award from The James Beard Foundation.
But the award turned out to be a hoax, and Jachens has resigned.
"I'm crushed," said Dan Worley, the restaurant's executive chef who has worked with Jachens for the past seven years. "I'm disappointed in him and extremely shocked."
Worley learned of the hoax over the weekend after the foundation alerted the restaurant.
"We've never, ever in the history of the awards uncovered anything like this," said Melanie Young, awards director for the foundation. "This reflects so badly all the way down. It's unfortunate for everyone that this was misrepresented."
An investigation, sought by the restaurant's majority owner, Dennis Nelson, revealed that Jachens had bought two large glass trophies that he claimed were presented by the foundation.
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