In 1988, McClelland bought
L'Espalier, a fine dining French restaurant in the
Back Bay, from
Moncef Meddeb (chef) before closing it in 2018. His second restaurant was
Sel de la Terre on
State Street. In 2016 he opened the
Essex, Massachusetts restaurant Riverbend. Along with
Daniel Bojorquez with whom he had worked at L’Espalier and Sel de la Terre, he opened La Brasa in
Somerville.
Awards and honors He is the only one in Boston to have earned seventeen consecutive Five Diamond Awards from AAA while at L’Espalier. In 1986,
Food & Wine named him of the top 25 new chefs in the US to watch. ==Personal life==