by Andrew Morrison | Early last month we revealed that restaurateurs James Iranzad (Cartel, Abigail’s Party) and Josh Pape (The Diamond) had secured 120 West Hastings with plans for a new joint arriving in 2012. There was no name or chef at that point (they’d only just signed the lease), so the news was “info-light”. In this week’s copy of the Westender, I have written a piece on the place, revealing a whole bunch of details, including a glance askance at the first menu and cocktail list drafts (mmm, bacon bitters). The paper doesn’t come out until Wednesday, so until then, here are the Cliff notes…

First off, the name is Wildebeest, which I really dig. It comes from the Afrikaans term for “Wild Cattle”, which is what the 17th century settlers to the Cape Of Good Hope called the ugly-looking creatures loping around the back veld. Assume it means Wild Beast (a clean Dutch translation), which is cooler. But I digress. The chef is none other than David Gunawan, who left his executive role at South Granville’s West last year to toil at Belgium’s Michelin-starred In De Wulf. Yup, he’s coming home. They’ve also picked up the sommelier services of Lindsay Ferguson, formerly of Salt Tasting Room (also a co-owner of the Re-Up food truck), not to mention the branding talents of Glasfurd & Walker (see L’Abattoir, Bao Bei, Scout Magazine). They have also confirmed that the basement will see a 40 seat wine lounge, complete with 12 bottle oenomatic machine (stoked). For more, check out the article coming out on Wednesday (I’ll link to it here the moment it goes online). If you need a reminder of the concept, read our earlier notes:

The 100 block of Hastings is on the edge of the DTES proper. It’s been cleaned up a lot in the last year or so, with the scaffolding of renovated buildings having recently being peeled away and SFU Contemporary Arts’ toned and modern buttocks now poking out onto a sizeable stretch of its northern sidewalk. The spot is the main floor of a south side “Heritage B” building just west of Nuba, Meat & Bread, La Taqueria, and Revolver. Newcomers Acme Cafe and Save On Meats are on the next block east (Sean Heather’s Bitter should open there later this month, too). It’s a pretty perfect address, and I trust they got it for a relative song seeing as the block isn’t quite ready – but is nevertheless destined – for prime time. My read is that they couldn’t have chosen any wiser, and that 115 seats won’t be too tricky to fill. After having the rough food concept explained to me, I imagine the kitchen will dish the kind of gutturally expressed but nevertheless refined comfort food that would appeal to carnivorous chefs on their nights off. Think chops, steaks, whole fish, off-cuts, small plates and so on. Think Andrey Durbach, Heidi Noble and Eleanor Chow sitting next to Adam Pegg, Lucais Syme, and Nico Schuermans at the bar drinking proper drinks and being very glad that someone else is doing the cooking. Think Toronto’s Black Hoof and LA’s Animal expressed in Vancouver’s uniquely awesome vernacular (one still hopes for tongue on brioche and BBQ pork belly sandwiches). As for look and feel, I picture a totally feasible set of seeming contradictions: casual but exacting; unpretentious but expert; composed but boisterous; communal but intimate. These guys are two of our best young pros, and they’ll likely attract a top drawer set of staffers, despite the informal set up. The early sketches I’ve seen depict a bar height banquette backing up to the brick and running the length of the wall to create a narrow service corridor between the facing high chairs and the deeply set, 12 seat bar (overseen by Pape, naturally). An open kitchen follows the line of the bar and leads to a proper chef’s table at the rear. It’s a basic composition, but it will lend itself to the desired communal feel of the concept. Back at the front right, the plans call for a short staircase being cut into the floor that will lead down to a 500 sqft, low-ceilinged area with potential for 20 seat private dining. That’s all well and good, but this downstairs space is too cool for exclusivity (reminiscent of a miniaturised Calabash basement). A lot of potential. I’m hoping it morphs into a wine lounge with snacks on unbooked nights.

ALL ANTICIPATED RESTAURANTS

by Andrew Morrison | Good news, gluttony fans. Local restaurateurs James Iranzad (Abigail’s Party, Cartel) and Josh Pape (former Bartender of the Year, co-owner of The Diamond) have picked up the voluminous, 2,400 sqft space at 120 Hastings across from the Woodwards complex with plans for turning it into a new restaurant and bar by February 2012. They’ve only just signed the lease on the newly renovated (read: empty) location, but trades have nevertheless made their assessments and the keys are in hand. The board is set. The pieces are moving. I can’t wait for this one.

The 100 block of Hastings is on the edge of the DTES proper. It’s been cleaned up a lot in the last year or so, with the scaffolding of renovated buildings having recently being peeled away and SFU Contemporary Arts’ toned and modern buttocks now poking out onto a sizeable stretch of its northern sidewalk. The spot is the main floor of a south side “Heritage B” building just west of Nuba, Meat & Bread, La Taqueria, and Revolver. Newcomers Acme Cafe and Save On Meats are on the next block east (Sean Heather’s Bitter should open there later this month, too). It’s a pretty perfect address, and I trust they got it for a relative song seeing as the block isn’t quite ready – but is nevertheless destined – for prime time. My read is that they couldn’t have chosen any wiser, and that 115 seats won’t be too tricky to fill. If it’s one tenth as popular as I reckon it will be, there will be some who will call Pape and Iranzad “gentrifiers” (which will amuse everyone they know).

After having the rough food concept explained to me, I imagine the kitchen will dish the kind of gutturally expressed but nevertheless refined comfort food that would appeal to carnivorous chefs on their nights off. Think chops, steaks, whole fish, off-cuts, small plates and so on. Think Andrey Durbach, Heidi Noble and Eleanor Chow sitting next to Adam Pegg, Lucais Syme, and Nico Schuermans at the bar drinking proper drinks and being very glad that someone else is doing the cooking. Think Toronto’s Black Hoof and LA’s Animal expressed in Vancouver’s uniquely awesome vernacular (one still hopes for tongue on brioche and BBQ pork belly sandwiches). Think Black Sabbath and early Genesis. I don’t know why, but you should probably just think it.

As for look and feel, I picture a totally feasible set of seeming contradictions: casual but exacting; unpretentious but expert; composed but boisterous; communal but intimate. These guys are two of our best young pros, and they’ll likely attract a top drawer set of staffers, despite the informal set up.

The early sketches I’ve seen depict a bar height banquette backing up to the brick and running the length of the wall to create a narrow service corridor between the facing high chairs and the deeply set, 12 seat bar (overseen by Pape, naturally). An open kitchen follows the line of the bar and leads to a proper chef’s table at the rear. It’s a basic composition, but it will lend itself to the desired communal feel of the concept.

Back at the front right, the plans call for a short staircase being cut into the floor that will lead down to a 500 sqft, low-ceilinged area with potential for 20 seat private dining. That’s all well and good, but this downstairs space is too cool for exclusivity (reminiscent of a miniaturised Calabash basement). A lot of potential. I’m hoping it morphs into a wine lounge with snacks on unbooked nights.

Ooh…

You can stay updated on Scout in the coming weeks as both the chef and the name are confirmed. In the meantime, behold the Rolls Royce passing the Miata above (gentrifiers!) and extend your morning office procrastination by discovering what other delicious things there are to look forward to by clicking below…

ALL ANTICIPATED RESTAURANTS

by Andrew Morrison | I’ve had to sit on this news through its rumour stage – that Dale Mackay, owner/chef of Ensemble and recent Top Chef Canada victor, was opening a second restaurant this December just a block or so from his Thurlow St. address – but Mackay confirmed to me this morning that it is definitely in the works for December. I can’t say exactly where just yet, nor can I tell you the name (it’s still being registered), but the concept sounds like a BBQ and beer-heavy pub that will serve the kind of fare that you’d normally associate with the milieu (nachos, burgers, bangers, pot pies, etc) only elevated to a level where just about everything is made in house from scratch and by hand. It’ll be sports heavy, too, with some fifteen 45″ flat screen TVs. Helming the kitchen will be chef de cuisine Bradley Hendrickson (now at Ensemble), with former DB Bistro sous chefs Alex Amos (recently Mission Hill) and Greg Reid (recently Quail’s Gate) in support. There will be a 40 foot bar of reclaimed wood to tend, and another 80 seats in an expansive dining room (with mezzanine). Running the show will be current Ensemble barman Christopher Cho, with operations back-up from the lovely and talented Ali Maher, formerly the maitre’d at DB Bistro. More soon.

ALL ANTICIPATED RESTAURANTS

Operations manager Mike Mitchell and owner Sean Heather inside the construction site at 18 West Hastings

by Andrew Morrison | I was given a tour of the upcoming “Bitter” beer-themed restaurant the other day. The building that houses it on Hastings had been wrapped up in scaffolding for as long as I can remember, but it’s all been dismantled now and construction has begun in earnest. Scout broke the news of its coming back in January:

Sean Heather and Scott Hawthorn, partners at Salt Tasting Room and Judas Goat, are joining forces for a third time to open a new joint called Bitter. “It’s an extension of Salt, really” says Heather, “only its a beer format instead of wine”. Beers will be had in all guises and sizes, from tiny tasters to pitchers, while the food will see fresh pretzels, weisswurst, smoked sausage, house sauerkraut, currywurst, whole smoked ham hocks, pickled onions, scotch eggs, pork pies, and more. Bitter will land on the main floor of the oddly-shaped (flat-iron-ish) building at 18 West Hastings opposite Pigeon Park, and will sport some 140 seats, two entrances (one from the street and one from the back alley), a patio in Center A’s parking lot, a 20ft diameter circular bar and finishing kitchen around which diners will sit and be served, and my favourite thing of all..a neon sign flashing the word “BITTER”.

Much of the construction is being done off-site, so right now they’re in prep stage, making everything ready for plug and play installation which will probably go down in September. When it launches toward the end of October, we can expect some 50 beers available in an atmosphere reminiscent of Vancouver’s pre-Prohibition era when the ales, lagers and bitters flowed liberally from a multitude of local breweries.

A circular bar will dominate the strangely shaped space. It will be backed by what Heather calls a “tower of beer,” meaning a working, Wonka-esque display of kegs, pressure valves and lines.  Surrounding it will be wooden bench banquettes (think church pews) and walls of glass looking out onto the street and through to the white picket fence-enclosed patio (shaded by a pair of leafy trees).

True to the heritage of the building, there are mosaic floors that are in the process of being patched and restored, cool girder beams across the ancient wood-slatted ceilings and lots and lots of gnarly red brick. The back of the space, which funnels to a point like the prow of a ship (sailing toward the Pender gate to Chinatown), will see an 18 seat semi-private room with a flatscreen TV for Canucks games and, typical in Heather ventures, an alleyway entrance for take-out fare. Take a look inside below, and please forgive the shaky camera work as I just got off crutches…

ALL ANTICIPATED OPENINGS

Granville Island just got a hell of a lot better with the new Edible Canada complex that opened its doors yesterday. In addition to the new retail store, the bistro really is something to behold. There are some 86 seats inside with another 102 on the expansive patio. We dig the take-out window, lengthy bar and open kitchen, as well as the demonstration kitchen in the glassed-in private room (complete with roll down garage door). Owner Eric Pateman has curated a seriously impressive assortment of local ingredients and home-grown booze for the menu (take a bow, mister). As per usual with this brand, if its made in BC and of a high quality, Eric is very probably pimping it. Take a look and have a proper drool…

ALL ANTICIPATED RESTAURANTS