BY STEPFANIE ROMINE | SROMINE@ENQUIRER.COM
COVINGTON - Chalk is simple, it’s fresh and it’s bursting with energy, says the management team of the new restaurant that opened Tuesday night at 318 Greenup St.
It’s kitschy gourmet comfort food, pastry chef Summer Genetti said quickly and with a laugh.
Expect fresh food that’s simply done, with a menu that changes frequently and with the season, in a casual, down-to-earth environment, said chef Jared Whalen.
“That’s the whole ‘chalkboard’ philosophy. Erase (a dish) and add another,” said Whalen, who, like Genetti, had been with Pho Paris since it opened in 2004 in Oakley, before moving to Covington.
Chalk Food + Wine - the latest restaurant from chef Jean-Robert de Cavel, Annette Pfund-de Cavel, and Marilyn and Martin Wade - opened in the same location as Pho Paris, the French-Vietnamese fusion restaurant that closed on New Year’s Eve.
From the pot-rack-and-kitchen-utensils chandelier in the bar to the papier-mâché head of garlic suspended from the dining-room ceiling, Chalk’s whimsy is evident.
Chalk’s food is made from scratch and from local and organic products whenever possible. Because it’s January, not much of the produce is local; but by summer at least 85 percent of it will be locally grown, Whalen said.
Manager Bryant Phillips, Whalen and Genetti had “a fair amount of latitude” when it came to décor and menu, with plenty of input from the owners, said Phillips. They, de Cavel and others have worked round the clock since Jan. 1 to transform Pho Paris to Chalk.
“It really was a group effort,” said Whalen.
The result is a no-fuss menu with as much personality as those who put it together. Entrées (dubbed “Eat Us”) are simply called Cow #1 (a filet with pearl onions and carrots, $22); duck (hung duck and orange, $17); and scallops (orzo and spinach, $17), for example. Sides (”Friends”) cost $6 or less and are meant to be shared.
Sweets - including a flight of cupcakes - are “very classic American desserts brought up to date in a contemporary fashion,” said Genetti. “It’s food you want to eat.”
Food is only half the story at Chalk. A side room is being converted into a retail wine store that will focus on boutique wineries, said Phillips.
He said the wine store should be open within a month.
The restaurant will focus on “food-friendly” wines by the glass, in line with menu prices, he said. Most glasses run $7-$9.
Chalk opens for lunch today and will be open weekdays at 11:30. Chalk will open at 5:30 for dinner on Saturdays.
The Jean-Robert French Restaurant Group also owns Jean-Robert at Pigall’s, Twist Lounge at Pigall’s and JeanRo Bistro in downtown Cincinnati, along with Greenup Café in Covington. An Over-the-Rhine project, Lavomatic Café, is expected to open by spring.
