The familiar, life-size Fiberglas chef has been standing outside Quiznos at 754 The Alameda since the sandwich shop opened in December 2002. Now he's gone and, apparently, is doing a bit of traveling.

Mike Malik, owner of the franchise, says he started leaving the chef outside when a Quiznos representative told him it was not an "approved" item for inside the store.

Malik had taken over that location at the end of July.

Three days after he started leaving the chef outside, Malik and his employees came to work to find him gone.

Then a letter arrived.

With a Sept. 15 postmark, the hand-printed letter reads:

"Dear Quiznos Management & Staff.

"Fear not. I am safe & well. I must apologize for my abrupt departure some weeks back. I was feeling stressed with the monotony of my day-to-day work at Quiznos. Every day, day in & day out I stood outside (faithfully & cheerily) urging customers inside with my hand-held sign. You can imagine a break was needed. 7 days a week, 12 + hours a day w/o benefits.

"So I decided a lengthy vacation would be good for both of us. I have found comfort & love & friendship at Burning Man. I am resting, well & feeling rejuvenated. I will return to work soon,

"Yours truly,

"Chef Quiznos

"P.S. This is one of my new friends. 'Joy' has been very friendly & has inspired me to loosen my apron strings."

Accompanying the letter was a photo of the smiling chef and a topless woman standing in front of an RV, apparently at the Burning Man gathering over Labor Day weekend in the Black Rock Desert of Nevada.

There's no return address, just the notation, "The chef—on vacation—traveling."

A second letter arrived, with a Sept. 25 postmark and the notation, "The Chef I'll be home soon!" This one is typed and reads:

"Dear Management,

"I hope all is going well in San Jose. I am making more friends by the day. Burning Man is such a warm place. Women don't wear many clothes and they seem to like the chef.

"My time away has been very good for me. The chef needed some 'me' time. Don't worry. I'll be back to work soon. .. . .

"I miss you all, but not that much.

"The Chef."

A photograph also accompanied the letter, but not one that can be printed or described in this newspaper.

"We just laugh about it," Malik says.

He didn't file a missing chef report with the police and has no intention of doing so.

"If he's gone, he's gone," says Malik with a philosophical shrug.

Yet, he's optimistic that the disappearance is just a prank, saying, "I expect him to come back from vacation soon, probably in the middle of the night."