Both sides in Real dispute plan to keep on cooking

The Real restaurant expects to reopen even as two of its former owner/managers have filed suit against the remaining owner.

Residents learned last week that Tom Fosnot and Ruth-Anne Adams had left the restaurant they co-founded with Linsday Parker in 2019. On November 6, Fosnot and Adams sent a group email to previous customers revealing that Parker had sued the pair.

“It has become increasingly hard for Tom and I over the past few months. The only thing that was not working in the restaurant was our partnership with Lindsey. After she filed a lawsuit against us, we decided it was time to choose happiness for our family. So Tom and I are now cooking somewhere else. We remain in a partnership with Lindsey, but what will resolve with the restaurant we are not sure,” the email said.

“Of course, we loved being in Lincoln and it was a heartbreaking decision for Tom and I. Meeting all the kind people who supported us over this past year and half, who gave us an opportunity to do what we loved, was a dream come true. We will continue to cook from our hearts, inspired by the land around us. We will not be cooking in Lincoln, but we have found another kitchen to create inspired dishes. We will be delivering weekly to your doorstep. Our menu will grow as we get more comfortable in our venture,” Fosnot and Adams added in their email.

“It is unfortunate that my partners chose to make a private dispute public. I will not comment on that further,” Parker wrote in an email to the Lincoln Squirrel on November 10. “More importantly, I can confirm that Real is sticking around. I have already had a number of exciting conversations with some chefs, and while Covid presently remains a factor for the community and the hospitality business, it is fun to think about what might be next.”

Adams and Fosnot also would not comment on the lawsuit but offered some details on their plans in a November 11 email to the Squirrel:

“We are very excited about this new venture. We will be offering from-scratch delivery options three days a week. The food will have a mix of simple fare as well as more complex dishes, but all will feature high-quality ingredients, as well as local when possible. We hope to have some fun with the menus. We are offering Thanksgiving for delivery and we will be offering holiday menus in December. Our website will be up soon, but right now we are sending emails with our offerings. If people want to be on the email list they can email us at tomandraa@gmail.com.”