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by Emily Patrick
Photos by Max Cooper
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Liquid nitrogen and sugar glass The owners of Cúrate to bring Nightbell to South Lexington Avenue
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AUGUST 28 - SEPTEMBER 3, 2013
Chef Katie Button says three is a magic number. That’s how many restaurants Asheville can expect from her. Button and her family, who own Cúrate bar de tapas on Biltmore Avenue, announced their second restaurant last week. Nightbell, a gourmand’s niche with a speakeasy atmosphere, will open hopefully in time for a New Years Eve celebration, Button says. “It’s all about the experience,” Button says. “We’re trying to bring a different experience from Cúrate. We’re trying to create our own feeling.” She’s noticed a couple of different types of patrons at Cúrate: sit-down diners and culinary itinerants. The later simply want to try a couple of things and have a glass of wine before moving on, and she wants to give them another outlet. After all, that’s how she and her husband and co-owner, Felix Meana, like to dine. “Felix and I, when we go out, we love to go to 3 or 4 different places,” she says. “The walking from place to place in a downtown is really nice. It just makes an evening out of it.” Nightbell is certainly designed for pedestrians. The entrance to the 32 S. Lexington Ave. space won’t have much branding, so guests will have to get close to the building to notice it. A doorman should heighten the intrigue, although his post will be more for whimsy than for exclusivity. The second floor barroom will offer small plates, cocktails and high end wines. There will be plenty to eat for dinner, but that won’t be a formal experience. “More finger food, less utensils,” Button says. Potential small plates include lobster rolls, duck and waffles and “a twist on angels on horseback with oysters and smoked pancetta foam,” according to the press release. (In their typical form, angels on horseback consist bacon-wrapped oysters.)
MoUnTAinx.coM
BEll of ThE chEESEcAkE BAll: Chef Katie Button will draw from her modernist roots to create the dessert list at Nightbell.
The classic — but updated — hors d’oeuvres on Nightbell’s menu are something of a throwback to the 1950s, Button admits. It’s a trend that’s unfolding in cities around the country. “It’s something familiar, but at the same time, it’s different and new,” Button says. “Some of those things we had planned on our menu for awhile, we’re looking and watching them pop up [other places]. It’s funny how everyone kind of gets on a vibe.” Particularly on the dessert list, Button will draw from her modernist roots — which include stages at elBulli in Roses, Spain, Noma in Copenhagen, and The
Bazaar in Los Angeles. Expect elaborate hard candies and cheesecake balls set with gelatin. The concept also includes craft cocktails and specialty liquors. Meana, also an elBulli alum, will spearhead that endeavor. “We’re going to be playing with liquid nitrogen,” he says. “The bartenders will spend 3 or 4 hours preparing.” Cúrate is known for its expansive wine selection, but the wine list at Nightbell will focus on highend bottles. “The wine program that we have is going to be very limited,” Meana says. “No more than 16 wines, and maybe I will offer 6 of them by the glass, but very top [quality].”