Michelin-Starred chef Bruno Chemel is set to bring a taste of Paris to San Francisco this summer with the opening of Le Parc Bistrobar. The French bistro, to be housed inside of the Galleria Park Hotel about three blocks east of Union Square, at Kearny and Sutter, will serve up classic French cuisine with an emphasis on fresh, seasonal ingredients. According to a representative of Le Parc Bistrobar from Fortune Public Relations, diners can look forward to an array of dishes including coq au vin and grilled flank steak, accompanied by a select wine list featuring French and Californian wines.
Fortune PR told Hoodline, "Bruno Chemel, for nine years a two-starred Michelin chef, has announced that this summer he will be opening Le Parc Bistrobar which is attached to the Galleria Park Hotel in San Francisco. The space was formerly home to Gaspar Brasserie."
Source: Le Parc Bistrobar
This comes as a new chapter for Chef Chemel, who for nearly a decade delighted palates at his two-starred Michelin restaurant, Baumé, in Palo Alto. Despite the stellar accolades, Chemel seemed to quickly move on after the closure of his latest venue, Bistronomie by Baumé, last August. Described as a venue that "finally feels free" from the constraints of Michelin guidelines, Bistronomie by Baumé was a venture for the chef to cook for the pure joy of guest satisfaction. "The erratic, corporate focus and fixations of the Guide have been a distraction for years," Chemel said at the time, in a statement to The Mercury News.
The high-profile closure of Bistronomie by Baumé joined a list of notable Bay Area restaurant shutterings, emphasizing the pressures and changes rocking the culinary landscape. Among them, the Korean fine dining spot Suragan bowed out promising a return in a new location, while the Mission District said goodbye to the popular vegan hub Gracias Madre after 14 years. These departures, as reported by The San Francisco Chronicle, mirror broader trends in the industry tackling challenges from high operating costs to shifting consumer tastes.
Le Parc Bistrobar aims to be an oasis of traditional French cooking amidst this landscape of change. Located at 185 Sutter Street, the restaurant is designed to evoke the ambiance of a mid-20th century Parisian bistro. With 130 seats spread across two levels of dining space, patrons can choose to enjoy their meals in a casual setting on the lower floor or opt for a more intimate dining experience upstairs. Although the website is still under construction, eager gourmets can mark their calendars to start making reservations through Toast once Le Parc Bistrobar is ready to welcome its first diners.
CORRECTION: The article has been corrected to state that the restaurant's location will be three blocks east of Union Square. It previously stated that it will be three blocks west.