San Francisco's Café du Nord reopens Wednesday under new ownership and with an increased focus on booze and food.
Originally built in 1907, the building was designated a San Francisco landmark this year. The new owners have created a new look for the space that is inspired by how it looked in the 1930s and 1940s.
"In reinventing the space, it was very much a restoration and not a renovation – in all cases, our design decisions were driven by what we could gather about the design of the space historically," Morgan Schick, creative director of The Bon Vivants, who have taken over the venue in partnership with Ne Timeas Restaurant Group, told NBC Bay Area. "As far as the legacy of Café du Nord, we wanted to recognize not only its most recent, beloved iteration, but also the 90 years of service that preceded it. We've tried to create a space that pays homage to all of that history."
Thomas McNaughton, the chef and partner behind successful Ne Timeas restaurants Flour + Water, Central Kitchen and the new Aatxe, has created a food menu ranging from light bar bites such as broiled oysters Kilpatrick and shrimp cocktail to larger plates like a hamburger, cioppino, and rib eye steak. The Bon Vivants have paired these options with a cocktail list featuring classic ideas interpreted with new ingredients.
Live music, once the principal focus of the venue, will appear nightly in the cafe's Viking Room, but the genres will be more limited than in the past, specializing in jazz, blues and cocktail piano.
