Say Farewell to Manager and Co-Owner of The Big Smoke, Gordon Kutil

Longtime Beijinger Reader Restaurant Awards Personality of the Year nominee Gordon Kutil is set to leave Beijing in a few days to start a new adventure back in the States with his girlfriend Sarah Ting Ting Hou (his marketing and PR guru).

Throughout his nine-plus years in Beijing, he has been involved with and has helped manage such ventures as The Rickshaw, Saddle Cantina, Uncle Otis, and The Big Smoke, all of which have contributed immensely to Beijing’s vibrant Western food scene in recent years. His special approach towards American cuisine has warmed our bellies and hearts for almost a decade, so it is sad to hear of his sudden departure.

The plan for Gordon and Sarah is to move to Nashville, Tennessee, a southern city known for delicious food and a vibrant music, likely giving him the opportunity to continue honing his barbecue skills. When asked for a comment on why he was leaving, he simply said: “Everyone has to leave at some point.”

As for The Big Smoke, lucky for us all things are still business as usual. Before he leaves, we would like to thank him for his years of service and tell everyone to take a look back in our archives to this interview we did in 2009 about his role in Dirty Dancing: One Night in Beijing. In this stage performance at Penghao Theater, he portrayed Baby’s other half Johnny in a stage adaptation of the movie set in Beijing during the 80s. Wow, Gordon! We didn’t know about this side of you.

More stories by this author here.

Email: danielkippwhittaker@thebeijinger.com

Photos: the Beijinger