Sarah Penn, a restaurateur who served small plates before the crest of the tapas craze and a mentor to many women in the industry, died on Tuesday in hospice care. She was 57.
Her death was confirmed by her sister Amy Sommers who said the cause was ovarian cancer.
Penn with her ex-husband and chef Felix Penn opened the groundbreaking Pair bistro in Ravenna in 2004 and later Frank’s Oyster House & Champagne Parlor nearby. When Covid hit, Pair closed and didn’t reopen due to the labor shortage. But last spring, Penn allowed a cook named Janet Becerra to showcase her Mexican cuisine in the French bistro. Called Pancita at Pair, the restaurant with fresh tortillas from heirloom masa became a sought after reservation. The prestigious James Beard Foundation essentially anointed Becerra as one of the rising culinary stars in the country when it nominated her for its “Emerging Chef” award earlier this week.
Penn, who spoke highly of Becerra, passed away shortly before that James Beard announcement. On Instagram, Becerra posted: “My heart is broken. Earlier this week I lost my mentor, business partner, and friend to cancer. Sarah, I will miss you dearly. You saw me for who I am and believed in me completely. You will always be a part of my journey.”
A woman in a male dominated field, Penn told the Seattle Times last year that knew how hard it was for a woman to make it in this tough racket and vowed to help other females and minorities launch their own projects.
Before the second act as Pancita, Pair was a showcase Francophile space for Sarah and Felix. Their corner bistro sat across from a cemetery. (Our neighbors never complained about the noise, her ex-husband quipped.)
The couple rolled out several concepts that were foreign to locals. Instead of big entrees, the menu focused on shared plates to pair with Old World wines, often showcasing golden beets and other veggies before the farm-to-table movement got traction. Pair implemented communal table dining in a city known for the Seattle Freeze.
Diners came across town for the brisket horseradish-crème fraiche and the gruyere cheese puffs along with wintry, comforting roast chicken in duck fat and potato gratin.
In 2009, the couple followed up with the New England-inspired Frank’s Oyster House & Champagne Parlor a few blocks away.
The couple divorced in 2018 but continued to work together until mid 2021 when Sarah bought out her partner. In an email, Felix wrote of how fond he was of his talented ex-wife who juggled many front of the house duties at both restaurants.
“She was a stylish tastemaker with vision, who took all the fine service points and wine knowledge she acquired working in fine dining in San Francisco and brought it home to Seattle where polished service points weren’t expected in a casual neighborhood spot,” he wrote to the Seattle Times.
Born on Oct. 14, 1966 in Seattle, Sarah Leech grew up in Mount Baker, a neighborhood facing “White flight” during the civil rights movement. Her mother Jane Leech said she and her late husband lived in an era of racial discrimination, so they wanted their two daughters to be raised in a neighborhood with “Blacks and Asian” neighbors.
Sarah’s older sister Sommers said that diversified upbringing made an impression on Sarah who saw how everybody wasn’t treated equally, which inspired her to help other women and minorities who didn’t have the same opportunities that she did.
A Franklin High class of ’64 graduate, she earned her film studies degree at The Evergreen State College in Olympia before moving to the Bay area for a master’s degree in Film Production at San Francisco State University. She paid her bills by working as a server including at Kuleto’s in Union Square, where she fell in love with the sous chef, Felix Penn. The coupled married in 2001 and moved back to her hometown two years later.
In the summer of 2021, Penn was diagnosed with ovarian cancer but kept her busy schedule, cooking with family and friends and hitting art shows to support other women including attending a neighbor’s harp performance while she had stage 4 cancer.
Penn was always charming and put people at ease, never wanting others to feel sorry for her, her friends and family said.
“She had a snappy, witty quality about her, like Bette Davis and Barbara Stanwyck with a modern sensibility,” her sister said.
In addition to her sister, Penn is survived by her life partner Tom Guyton, her mother and nephews Ryan and John Sommers.
In lieu of flowers, the family said the public can honor Penn by dining out at family-owned restaurants to support the struggling industry.
#Seattle #restaurateur #Sarah #Penn #Pair #Franks #Oyster #House #dies
