On Saturday afternoon, the hustle and bustle at the Ordinary Oyster Hall was rather subdued as preparations were being made for an employee dinner later that night.
Chef Mike Lata and his partner Adam Nemirow were unflappable, despite looking down the barrel at the most hotly anticipated opening of the year. The last time the two opened a restaurant together, it was ten years ago and they were hardly well known. FIG had time to evolve and mature as a restaurant.
“Nobody gave a shit,” laughs Lata about the opening of FIG. He admits that he’s intentionally insulated himself from the outside world’s expectations for the Ordinary. “I’ve worked very hard over the last ten years with Adam to make a great restaurant. We’ve created lots of goodwill. I think it will be OK for us to make a couple of mistakes. But the oysters will always be fresh and cold,” he promises.
After many years of concepting and a solid year of putting plans in motion, Lata and Nemirow will finally open the Ordinary to the public this Wednesday.
Our sneak peek on Saturday gave us a tantalizing look at the drink and food menus. See Jonathan Boncek’s slideshow for a glimpse and stay tuned for our full feature coming out in Wednesday’s paper.
In the meantime, here’s what you need to know (and some of these are subject to change):
• The raw bar only will be served from 3-5:30 p.m. followed by full service menu until 10 p.m. They’ll be closed on Mondays.
• The rum list is extensive and impressive. The signature cocktail is the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club Cocktail made with Mt. Gay.
• Don’t expect a big red Cabernet on the wine list. Nemirow has curated the list to complement seafood. Order a glass of the Muscadet with your first plate of oysters. You won’t be sorry.
• The menu is designed for grazing with salads and cold plates, sandwiches (lobster roll!), and hot plates too.
• The seafood towers come in one, two, and three heights.
• The caviar is from Alabama and Mississippi.
• The oysters will give you some insight into the local waters, from Bulls Bay to the ACE Basin.
• Lata promises the food will be simple, not cheffy.
• If your’e looking for an app/entree/dessert situation, you will be able to order the entree of the day (plat du jour) which will come with a salad and a dessert. Lata is hoping to keep the price low enough to make locals very happy.
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