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Mid-county diners had reason to salivate last week with Gerard Craft's announcement of both a new Niche and a new concept, called Pastaria by Niche, both coming to the Centene Plaza this year (in the space at left).
Craft continues to own and operate Brasserie by Niche and Taste by Niche, both in the CWE.
The restaurants will occupy 7000 SF, side by side, in the westernmost section of the still-vacant Centene Shops in the 7700 block of Forsyth in Clayton, adjacent to a multi-story parking lot. Plans call to move Niche, Craft's flagship restaurant, by late Spring 2012 with Pastaria opening several months after that.
Niche is the known commodity here, and Craft has indicated diners can count on more of the award- winning (and ever-evolving) cuisine in the new space. SPACE Architecture + Design is the architect for both restaurants, and although design details are still under wraps, if Franco, Robust, the butterfly room at Monarch, Amigo's Cantina, Vino Nadoz, Bobo Noodle House (winner of an AIA award), Mosaic, Prime 1000, Chill, and soon-to-bow Nico (and that list goes on) are any indication, the new Niche will not suffer from lack of style.
Not to muscle Niche into a second-class, well, niche, but what really intrigues us is this long-awaited new concept, Pastaria. Let's start with the pronunciation...Pastaria rhymes with mama mia. It will share a hallway (and therefore bathrooms) with Niche. There are private dining rooms in a mezzanine area that will be available to both restaurants. One of these rooms has a window that allows diners a peek into Craft's pasta making facility. Here's where it gets interesting...
All of the pasta will be fresh-made and in house. Yet Craft intends to keep the price point low and appeal to families. Wisely, he does not want to compete with the Cafe Napoli's, the Dominic's Trattoria's, and the Tucci & Fresta's--Clayton;s higher-end Italian pool is plenty crowded, thank you. Craft just took delivery on a nifty extruder that cranks out pasta in different shapes and sizes--from sheets and strands right down to the letters of the alphabet (see left)--this means mom and dad can twirl into a bowl of $12 bucatini while junior's making up words with his alphabet mac 'n cheese.
Craft's challenge--really, any restaurateur's challenge--is just to provide a quality product at a reasonable price. He told Relish that, much to the possible chagrin of his investors, to achieve his goals he will work with lower margins. Savvy operators much prefer a full house/lower margins to the converse. The adage "volume covers all ills" is a long-established restaurant truism.
Craft will also take advantages of economies of scale. Being part of a larger restaurant group will allow him, for example, "to buy quantities of a very special olive oil from Umbria that will be used at all four restaurants," he said, "and we can commit to things like an entire crop of a farmer's tomatoes. All that translates to better quality and lower prices all around."
The challenge for SPACE's Tom Niemeier is "to take the slickest space in town and make it look like it's been there awhile, " he said. Pastaria will seat 130 and it will be casual--boisterous even. For lack of a better description, the look will resemble a largish tavern, according to Niemeier, a place where no one scoffs at a person in jeans. Craft said he's looking for that "everybody's welcome" kind of vibe, in his words, a "Town Hall" type of environment.
So look for distressed finishes, use of salvaged barn wood, and a long communal table in the windows along Forsyth Ave. Niemeier explained that any excess noise "will be tempered by sound deadening panels on the undersides of tables, insulation placed high in the rafters into areas you cannot see," and use of design touches like a long "quilt" fashioned from flour sacks, which will also absorb sound. Pastaria's exposed ceiling is 25 feet tall, so we can only assume that will be one long quilt.
Craft has a wife and two children (he's far from alone), and guys like me can get behind quality (especially Craft's quality) at everyday prices. Plus, Niche will be right next door for non-everyday occasions. It's not hard to see why the dining community's so excited...
