Mark Stark says Bird & The Bottle will open by month’s end, even if he has to install equipment like the beer taps himself
You’ve been craving matzoh ball soup, prepared ramen style. Or perhaps cheesy grits topped in pickled shiitakes, grilled chicken, cured egg and spicy schmaltz.
Happily for you, restaurateurs Mark and Terri Stark are on the same wave-length, and after more than a year of planning, are finally (really) debuting the latest in their North Bay restaurant empire at the end of the month (if all goes well, by October 1st). It’s Bird & The Bottle in Santa Rosa, and the theme is “a modern tavern celebrating the melting pot that is American cuisine.”
In some cases, that means taking that melting pot and giving a good shaking up, all together at once.
Witness: chef de cuisine Eric Foster (Willi’s Seafood & Raw Bar) is peppering the menu with uncommon combinations like grilled and chilled shellfish accompanied by Southern Saltines and Korean chile butter. There’s clam chowder studded with kielbasa; kimchee latkes with sour cream and garlic chives; chicken fried oysters with shiso leaf and spicy mayo; and schmears like smoked black cod with sour cream, onion, and fresh horseradish; or wood grilled brie with tomato jam and charred garlic, both served with grilled Jewish rye.
“I designed it around all the things that I love to eat and cook, and on dishes from childhood and time spent living in Chesapeake Bay,” said Mark Stark, of the eatery that takes over the former Italian Affair at Fourth Street between Brookwood and College avenues.
If there’s an anchor idea to the eclectic mix, it’s the Grillworks wood-burning grill, for lots of local meats, fish, and the signature double cheeseburger. Other big plates will include buttermilk fried chicken, wood grilled fish, 12-hour smoked pork shoulder, and applewood smoked duck, all served on speckle ware, with sesame biscuits.
Like the Starks’ five other restaurants – Willi’s Wine Bar, Monti’s Rotisserie and Stark’s Steak & Seafood in Santa Rosa, and Willi’s Seafood and Bravas Bar de Tapas in Healdsburg – there’s plenty of emphasis on cocktails, too. Here, libations will be served by the glass or in growlers (for craft beers) or in oversized cocktail shakers to (presumably) share with the table.
And also like the other restaurants, the space is kind of funky, set in an old former home split into three dining rooms and two decks, with seating for 116 guests.
Stay tuned.
Bird & The Bottle: 1055 Fourth Street, Santa Rosa; 707-568-4000 or birdandthebottle.com.