Ciao
San Antonio's Pearl district says ciao to 2 new Italian restaurants
One restaurant group is serving up two new Italian concepts for San Antonio's popular Pearl district.
On June 28, San Antonio-based Maverick Restaurant Group announced plans to bring a full-service restaurant and a fast-casual cafe to the trendy district, both serving up Italian fare, centered around outdoor dining, and slated to open this fall.
Allora, located on the ground floor of the Credit Human building, is described as a "stylish, full-service coastal Italian restaurant," while Arrosta, on the ground floor of the adjacent Oxbow building, will be "an Italian fast-casual cafe."
"The two new concepts intend to redefine the Italian culinary experience in San Antonio through stunning dining spaces, innovative recipes, and unique wine offerings," a release says.
At full-service restaurant Allora, guests will dine from a menu featuring raw and cooked seafood, housemade pastas, and savory meats. The more casual counter-service concept Arrosta will serve "Italian street foods," ranging from rotisserie chicken to salads, sandwiches, and fried foods, available for dine-in or to-go.
“These new restaurants will offer hybrids of Italian cuisine, combining disciplined French cooking techniques informed by traditional old-world Italian recipes and jazzed up with contemporary New York Italian style and creativity," says Peter Selig, president of the restaurant group, in the release. "Allora and Arrosta will bring recognizable Italian tastes, but with bolder and more distinctive combinations of flavors. Our team calls it cooking with 'sprezzatura,' which means simply doing something challenging but making it look easy and stylish without pretense.”
That team includes chef Robbie Nowlin, formerly of Otium in LA, who will lead Allora, and chef Chris Carlson, also head of the group's Maverick Texas Brasserie, at the helm of Arrosta. Overseeing wine programs at both establishments will be the group's director of hospitality and wine, Joshua Thomas.
“Allora and Arrosta are welcome additions to Pearl and will bring ever-popular Italian cuisine to the neighborhood. We’re excited to extend Pearl’s culinary experience to the Broadway corridor as our city center evolves,” says Mesha Millsap, COO of Pearl.
The group is targeting a fall opening for both concepts, but hungry San Antonians can get a first taste on August 10 at a special pop-up dinner hosted at Maverick Texas Brasserie. The $50 ticket includes a four-course meal of antipasti, pasta, main, and dolci. A wine pairing is available for $25.
