Oh Wait...This is a TAVERN

Since they first taped a makeshift sign to their front door in March 2010, we here at FIPS have devoted a whole lot of precious Internet space to our HOTT FIPS LOVE for Thistle Hill Tavern...five times to be exact...& a dozen or so if you count all the mentions of the Thistle Hill offshoots.

Since the opening, they've been named "Best New Neighborhood Joint" by Timeout NY. More recently, Dave & John (who own the place, along with NOFX's Fat Mike), have partnered with Top Chef alum Dale Talde to open Talde. Now they're working with Dale on something that we'll refer to as the "Super Secret Roadhouse Bar Project." Things have been going pretty swimmingly for them.

Well, mostly. There was one problem. 

The name of their first joint was Thistle Hill TAVERN. Said "tavern" had a bar... yet it only seated FOUR PEOPLE. What kind of tavern is this, huh?

It took a bit for Dave & John to realize this fact, but once they wised up, the pair decided to expand the bar threefold to twelve seats. It was sort of a reaction to losing all of those single people who came to the door, saw all the bar seats were taken & promptly went down the street to someplace else. 

That's not even the major change though. In addition to expanding the bar seating, they've recently brought in Jon Wallace (formerly of Carroll Gardens' Buttermilk Channel) as executive chef. When they first opened, they tried to be adventurous with the menu. Even with that adventurousness, the majority of what they ended up selling was burgers & comfort food stuff.

...so that's now the focus...comfort food. With Jon now in the kitchen, they've got BI-COASTAL OCEAN FARE on the menu -- like steamed Maine Mussels & Roasted Alaskan Wild Salmon. They've got Steak Frites & a Southern Fried Half Chicken. There's a Speck & Fried Egg Sandwich on the brunch menu. It's all new & improved & shit.

When I stopped by & shared a beer with Dave this past St. Patty's Day afternoon, the night after they officially reopened, he was pretty psyched about the changes.

From what he told me, on that first night, everyone wanted a seat at the bar. With the menu changes, they've seen more of an even distribution of orders across the menu. While this may be a testament to the fact that it's a new menu & people are more inclined to try out new things across the board, it's probably a good sign.

[end Thistle Hill post #6]

Read way more from Shawn at eatdrinksnack.com.