Private Patina.

Chef Joachim Splichal's famed Patina Group, responsible for feeding visitors to such iconic L.A. cultural centers as the Hollywood Bowl and Disney Hall, is heading out on its own.

Splichal and Nick Valenti, chief executive of New York-based Restaurant Associates, which the L.A.-based Patina Group merged with in 1999, announced last week that they are buying the Patina Group and Restaurant Associates' restaurants from London-based parent Compass Group. The purchase price wasn't disclosed.

"Joachim and I have a proven success record," said Valenti in a statement. "We will continue expanding on the vision that brought us together in 1999, growing our existing businesses while continuing to develop new experiences for our guests in New York, Los Angeles and beyond."

After the buyout, a yet-to-be-named, private corporate entity will be set up. The Compass Group, which will remain an investor and stay in control of the managing services, entertainment and sports divisions of Restaurant Associates, is publicly traded on the London Stock Exchange.

The upcoming restaurant company will receive further funding from Tokyo-based restaurant and food service company Shidax Corp.

"Nick and Joachim have assembled a superior management team and their future plans directly contribute to Shidax's mission of growing high quality restaurants and retail food service," Ken Shida, the company's chief executive, said in a statement.

In an interview last Thursday, Splichal said the current leadership of Patina Group isn't changing. "We have a very small, energetic management team. We can compete in the marketplace," he said. "We are becoming a small regional company, and I think that is important."

Splichal and Valenti have been behind some of the most notable restaurants in their respective cities, Los Angeles and New York. Splichal's crop of L.A. restaurants includes Patina, Nick & Stef's Steakhouse, Cafe Pinot and Zucca Ristorante. Valenti's New York restaurants include Brasserie, Cafe Centro, Naples 45 and the Sea Grill.

All together, Valenti told the New York Times last week, the new company will own about three dozen restaurants. He added that the company will have $200 million in annual revenue and will look to expand its key concepts, Patina and Naples.

Even with the Patina Group escaping from under its umbrella, the Compass Group, one of the world's largest employers, will continue to have a presence on the L.A. dining scene. Starting in 1998, the company formed a strategic partnership with Wolfgang Puck Catering, known for scooping caviar gobbled up by celebrities and their friends at the annual post-Oscars Governors Ball.