Chef Michael O'Dowd and Business Partner Ed Leclere Are Splitsville

Chef Michael O'Dowd and partner Ed Leclere, founders of Vivid Lifestyle Concepts (VLC), the company they started this spring after O'Dowd left as executive chef at the Sheraton Phoenix Downtown, have called it quits. Under VLC, O'Dowd and Leclere, a former Harley-Davidson promotions director, opened North Scottsdale's Renegade by MOD...

By Laura Hahnefeld

November 21, 2013

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Chef Michael O'Dowd and partner Ed Leclere, founders of Vivid Lifestyle Concepts (VLC), the company they started this spring after O'Dowd left as executive chef at the Sheraton Phoenix Downtown, have called it quits.

Under VLC, O'Dowd and Leclere, a former Harley-Davidson promotions director, opened North Scottsdale's Renegade by MOD in May and Wicked Six Bar and Grill by MOD in Fountain Hills in October. A third restaurant, Fork & Torque, a smokehouse-style restaurant housed inside a seven-acre, motorcycle-themed complex at Curry Road and McClintock Drive in Tempe, also was in the works for this year.

A representative for VLC had this to say:

"Chef Michael O'Dowd and his Partner Ed Leclere have parted ways amicably as of this week. O'Dowd and Leclere share a longstanding friendship and wish nothing but the best for each other as they pursue different business ventures in the food, beverage, and entertainment industries. The door has been left open for them to reunite on future projects."

The representative goes on to say that O'Dowd, also a former executive chef at Kai, is no longer a partner in Vivid Lifestyle Concepts or any of its restaurants, and that Leclere intends to move forward with future concepts, including Fork & Torque.

Stay tuned for details.

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