Earlier this 12 months, Scene contributor Cameron Beyrent waxed poetic in regards to the magic of the now-shuttered Cafe Coco. Lastly, this week, the Rock Block house that when housed Cafe Coco is reopening. Co-owners Beau Gaultier and Connor Bloem and govt chef Daniel Gorman hope to create some magic of their very own within the beloved spot.
Remembering the Rock Block’s all-night place of belonging, gone however not forgotten
After just a few weeks of a comfortable launch, this week (lastly) marks the grand opening of Verna Café and Bar and Connie’s, the 2 linked companies within the outdated Cafe Coco house. Verna Café is an all-day cafe and bar, whereas Connie’s is Gaultier and Bloem’s tackle a brand new dive bar. Verna’s is open Wednesday by Sunday, 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. Connie’s is open Thursday by Saturday, 3 p.m. to midnight.
Gaultier, who many locals know for his work on the now-shuttered Bay 6 in The Wash, is enthusiastic about creating food and drinks which are past the strange in a welcoming, pretense-free house.
On the menu are three Child Muffins, which Gaultier describes as a cross between a pancake and a muffin, baked in molds with gluten-free flour. It’s a dainty however substantial home pastry, with varieties starting from the candy (banana rum) to the not-so-sweet (matcha) to the offbeat (miso cake). There are egg sandwiches and chia pudding and, after all, a protracted checklist of drinks. Gaultier utilized his mixology ethos to the espresso and latte drinks, initially presenting a problem for his skilled baristas. They prevailed and got here up with a banana pudding latte that grew to become a fast best-seller throughout the comfortable opening. “I’m the Downside” is a matcha made with cornbread milk (produced from cornbread crumbs baked for different dishes). Connie’s has a “curated scorching canine menu,” Gaultier explains, plus negronis, outdated fashioneds and some frozen drinks.
Inside Connie’s Bar
A number of the menu dishes had been impressed by a interval a pair winters in the past when enterprise at Bay 6 was sluggish, so the crew began providing pop-ups with Cajun onigiri. They mixed the Cajun cooking of Gaultier’s upbringing with Japanese bites.
“We began realizing how a lot crossover there’s between the 2 cuisines, as a result of it is seafood and rice and that’s peasant delicacies,” he says.
A hallway connects the 2 companies, and Gaultier hopes folks will movement backwards and forwards. “Once I exit for drinks, I need one good cocktail, after which I wish to swap. That is the hope for us, that folks are available for the completely satisfied hour drink after which one good cocktail, they usually sort of mosey over to Connie’s for yet another beer.”
Verna’s is known as partially for the spring equinox and the way in which during which they hope to have a “terroir-driven expertise,” and in addition his grandmother. Connie’s is Bloem’s spinoff of Gaultier’s nickname for Bloem, which has caught.
Gaultier and Bloem know there’s plenty of love for the outdated Cafe Coco house, they usually really feel the accountability there. They’re additionally completely satisfied to be updating (for Codes and for themselves), with extra ADA accessibility and higher bogs, amongst different perks. They hope folks will come and hang around, speaking to one another as an alternative of logging right into a laptop computer to work. And whereas Verna’s and Connie’s received’t be open 24 hours like Cafe Coco as soon as was, they’re obtainable morning, midday and evening, serving folks for no matter they need, be it scorching canine or child muffins.
