Public Kitchen & Bar
| Public Kitchen & Bar | |
|---|---|
 | |
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| Restaurant information | |
| Established | 2013 |
| Owner(s) | Carly Blasutti and Ryan Murphy |
| Food type | Spanish |
| Street address | 300 Victoria St. N. |
| City | Kitchener |
| State | Ontario |
| Country | Canada |
| Coordinates | 43°27′31″N 80°29′03″W / 43.45858°N 80.48410°W |
Public Kitchen & Bar (stylized as PUBLIC Kitchen & Bar) is a tapas-style bistro in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada, located at 300 Victoria St. N.[1] The restaurant began as a catering business, before opening its first brick-and-mortar location in 2013. The restaurant is owned by Carly Blasutti and Ryan Murphy. In 2017, the restaurant moved to a much larger location. The menu frequently changes, and consists of tapas-style shareable plates. The food is mainly Spanish cuisine, but takes inspiration from a variety of other cuisines.
History
[edit]Public Kitchen & Bar began as a basement catering business.[2][3] The restaurant is owned by Carly Blasutti (who runs the front of house) and Ryan Murphy (who is the head chef).[4][2] They opened the restaurant's first location in 2013,[3] at 295-b Lancaster St. W.[5] It was small, with nine tables, and 26 seats.[2][5] They opened a small store called Public Market at 324 Frederick St. in 2015,[4] but it has since closed. In November 2017, the restaurant moved from Lancaster St. to its current Victoria St. location, which was much larger, with three times more seating.[2] With the move, the menu was rebuilt with a Spanish focus.[2] During the April 2020 COVID-19 lockdowns, the restaurant became takeout-only.[3] During this time, the restaurant was "hanging on by a thread" according to Blasutt.[3]
Menu
[edit]The menu is regularly changed,[1] and consists of tapas-style shareable plates.[5] Example dishes include beef tartare, scallops, and roasted eggplant.[5] The smoked salmon with rösti is a local favourite and stays permanently on the menu.[1] The menu is mainly inspired by Spanish cuisine but also fuses with other cuisines, for example, Southeast Asian cuisine or Indian cuisine.[5]
Reception
[edit]In 2013, Leigh Clarkson of The Record praised the restaurant's cheap prices, atmosphere, and menu.[6] Caroline Aksich, writing for the travel guide Frommer's, praised the restaurant's food, drink list, and ambience.[1] Ryan Murphy of The Record reviewed the restaurant in 2017; Murphy praised the food and atmosphere, but found it too cozy at times, and was mixed on some of the dishes.[5] Murphy gave the restaurant a score of 3 out of 4 possible "forks".[5] In 2017, Kristen Philippi of the Community Edition praised the atmosphere and service, and said the restaurant "made a definite mark in the Kitchener-Waterloo food scene".[2]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d Aksich, Caroline. "Public Kitchen and Bar in Kitchener-Waterloo - Restaurant". Frommer's. Retrieved 13 January 2024.
- ^ a b c d e f Philippi, Kristen (1 November 2017). "New Beginnings for Public Kitchen & Bar". The Community Edition. Retrieved 13 January 2024.
- ^ a b c d Bielak, Alex (11 April 2020). "Public Kitchen returns to takeout origins: We topped off our delicious battered chicken dinner with banana cream pie". Waterloo Region Record. Kitchener, Ontario. ProQuest 2391822079.
- ^ a b Coppolino, Andrew (10 December 2015). "Public Kitchen restaurateurs to open market in Central Frederick area". CBC News.
- ^ a b c d e f g Murphy, Ryan (5 May 2017). "Dining Out: Simple shared plates delight at Public Kitchen and Bar". Waterloo Region Record. Kitchener, Ontario. WhatsOn. ProQuest 1895499831.
- ^ Clarkson, Leigh (27 December 2013). "Dining Out: Best of the best for 2013". The Record. Retrieved 13 January 2024.