Look inside the new Quaitrelle

Quaintrelle has spent the better part of five years serving as a dining destination on Mississippi Avenue. In the dark two-story dining room, guests soaked up brightly colored, wildly garnished cocktails and local wines alongside equally colorful dishes of seafood and hyper-seasonal produce. Chef Ryley Eckersley, Chef Jamie Wilcox, Bar Manager Camille Cavan and Wine Director Chris Cooper work as a team, pairing drinks and wines with elaborate yet fun tasting menus. But the restaurant made the surprising announcement in May that it would move, shut down the Mississippi space, and move into a Clinton Street apartment building that once housed Burrasca.

This weekend, Quaintrelle is set to reopen with a mix of familiar and new. Eckersley calls it “Quaintrelle 2.0”. While still atmospheric and somewhat dark, the restaurant has much more natural lighting, and the team have worked to express their identity in art and decor as much as they do with their food and drinks. “It gave us the opportunity to define who we are as a restaurant,” Eckersley says. “We take a space and start at the beginning with our identity completely. He shouts “we” as soon as you enter. ”

Among the changes to the space are things that Eckersley and Cavan designed themselves. Cavan was able to build his bar from scratch, and its design immediately evokes his bartending style – daring and experimental but with a concern for balance. She even brought many plants from the old building to add to those in Burrasca. Along with the space, she revamped her cocktail program – patrons will still find inventive drinks mixed with amari and herbal liqueurs or topped with bushels of herbs and dehydrated citrus, but she says it ‘is now more mature, a little less “naughty” and a little more refined. Eckerlsey describes how perfect Cavan’s cocktails are, served under the elaborate chandelier that now hangs from the ceiling.

Molly J. Smith

Molly J. Smith

Molly J. Smith

Eckerlsey was also able to shape his space, rebuilding the kitchen with the help of a team to meet his specifications. The large wooden slab used to plate the dishes has been added and enlarged. He calls it his easel, and anyone who’s seen his food knows why – each dish looks like a work of art, playfully adorned with local and seasonal flowers, fruits and herbs. The menu often refers to the ingredients simply as “crispy things” or “pretty things”. Eckerlsey thinks it’s more fun that way, building the experience from when diners look at the menu. But it is still as useful as ever: he uses his food as an opportunity for expression and to provide a memorable and thoughtful experience. There’s a reason diners always flock to the somewhat pricey tasting menu. It’s fanciful, yes, but never superficial.

Molly J. Smith

Molly J. Smith

Besides the tasting menus – which come in five, seven, or nine courses with additions and drink pairings available – a la carte options are available. With this new iteration of the restaurant, the tasting menu will be entirely separate from the a la carte dishes, and the latter will stay on the menu a little longer than before, although they still reflect the seasons and locality.

Eckerlsey has a knack for emphasizing ingredients and flavors without relying too much on fats. He much prefers to season something with fish sauce, garlic and chili rather than adding butter, salt and oil. This is also not a meat-dependent restaurant – there is a lot of seafood and produce. Beef tartare, however, is inherited from the old space, a seasonally changing dish that Eckersley says is very non-traditional, currently including marinated squash in bread and butter, sesame egg yolk, and smoked British cheddar.

Molly J. Smith

These dishes can be enjoyed in the artistic dining room or on the back patio; the spacious outdoor area can comfortably seat around 40 guests, and the team is currently building a covered pergola for the rainy season.

Molly J. Smith

Molly J. Smith

Quaitrelle officially opens on Sunday August 29 at 2032 SE Clinton Street. Reservations start September 1st. Guests must provide proof of vaccination and wear a mask unless they are seated.