Restaurateur Adam Baru has long coveted the cozy building on the fringe of downtown at W. Liberty and S. First. Since opening downtown destination Mani Osteria in 2011, he’s seen the 2,170-square-foot spot serve pizza, barbecue, and Indian fare in succession. Plans for an Italian concept there were abandoned last year.
“It’s one of those places that you drive by and always daydream a little bit about,” he says. “Gosh, what a great little location. And I’d love to do something there.”
He’s now purchased the property for $1,362,500 to bring back a French-inspired bistro. Le Mec, a colloquialism that translates as “the guy,” is also the name of a burger that was a favorite at Mikette, the Plymouth Rd. predecessor he closed during the Covid-plagued year of 2020.
Flashbacks: Rock ‘n’ Roll French (Sept. 2016)
Mikette Revisited (July 2019)
We had to focus on what got us here: Adam Baru closes Mikette (July 2020)
Baru tells the Observer he’s crafting a “focused and specific” menu, with a full liquor license. The burger will be refreshed as a showcase item, with their own buns and house-cut fries.
He initially thought the small space would be more conducive to a takeout and counter service concept, “but ultimately, it just didn’t feel like it was who we are,” he says.
Two small dining rooms will seat about sixty, with more seating on a seasonal patio out front. “I think it’ll be a nice complement to everything that everybody else is already doing in that area,” he says, noting the prospect of both downtown and Old West Side neighborhood customers.
Mani Osteria general manager Amalia Di Rita has been given an ownership stake to run the day-to-day operation, which Baru hopes to kick off in time for football season.
“The most exciting piece of this is the fact that it’s this collaborative effort with this group of people that I’ve been working with since we really got started here,” he says. “That is definitely a driving factor, way more than what might have been fifteen years ago.”
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