director of liquid operations
tallulah group

food and wine have long been a part of antoine przekop’s life, but he never thought it would be the basis for an obsessive career.

“i thought i would go through medical school and enjoy wine as a really fun hobby on the side”.  as the director of liquid operations for the tallulah group, a young company consisting of tallulah wine bar & bistro and the soon to open bella piatti, a northern italian osteria concept focusing on traditional dishes and pairings, antoine presides over all aspects of wine and beverage service, staying abreast of the global wine and cocktail scenes and sharing his knowledge and passion with his guests and staff members.

in 1996, przekop began his restaurant career as a host at tucci milan in chicago, il. it was here that przekop’s interest in wine was realized on a professional level. “i used to travel to france every summer to visit my family, and my uncle, who was a devoted wine collector, used to sneak me a taste of the bordeaux, burgundy or rhône that was on the table. a meal wasn’t a meal without wine, it was just eating,” said przekop.  he credits not only his uncle but also his entire french family and their appreciation of culinary culture and the place that wine has within it. “at tallulah, wine has transcended the need to be with food, we sell half a case before the kitchen opens for service at 5 o’clock.”

working in restaurants throughout college, he tried to learn something new about wine everyday. upon returning to his home state of michigan in 2004, przekop became the assistant sommelier at tribute, a aaa four diamond restaurant with 2000 selections on the wine list.  within six months he had earned the title of wine director. “instead of learning one new thing everyday, i was learning 15 or 20, and I knew that the learning process would be constant.” having passed the introductory sommelier exam in fall 2004, he hasn’t rested on his laurels and has been studying to enter the master of wine program in spring 2012.

in 2007, antoine joined the mina group, and working for wine director rajat parr. “working with the mina group was an incredible learning experience and their business philosophy and rajat’s true humility made me grow as a person and further developed my attention to details”.  an even more exciting opportunity to work with mindy vanhellemont created a new beginning in antoine’s career. “i couldn’t be happier to be in michigan, sharing my passion with our guests and providing the service and warm sense of hospitality each and every night. it is fun and an absolute pleasure.”