Sneak peek: New downtown Lexington restaurant opens for nightlife, brunch
The team behind ELIXIR Downtown, the new restaurant, bar and music venue in the former Parlay Social building, had big plans for ramping the historic building. Then came the coronavirus pandemic, which has hit the hospitality industry especially hard.
So what did they do? They went even bigger.
After all, said owner Stephen Scaldaferri, they were closed anyway.
“We decided when all this COVID stuff hit to take things a little bit further and really stripped this place down to nothing, down to the bricks,” he said. “There is not a fork, a knife, a plate, a glass, a light bulb, a tile, nothing that wasn’t changed.”
Much of the work he and his team, general manager Oliver Winn and chef Nick Fisherkeller, did themselves, from scrubbing the kitchen to hand painting almost 500 ceiling tiles.
The result is a fresh, light open space that really shines at night, when it becomes an upscale lounge. The public will get a chance for a look when the restaurant and bar opens on June 12 with dinner and live music. They also will launch brunch this weekend as well, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday.
Hours will expand the first weekend in July, Scaldaferri sais. “We’re easing in with the COVID aspect ... we want to make sure we’re creating the right experience for everyone,” he said.
The plan is still to create a destination in downtown for live original music, which will be enhanced by a new stage, lighting and sound system, with a respectable bar and food menu that will be available into late night in the bar and through a walk-up takeout window on the sidewalk.
Fans of the old Parlay Social will find much to embrace, Winn said. He was the manager there too and knows the downtown scene well. Although the small tables are largely gone, the roomy bar with large booths will provide lots of seating while still providing space for social distancing.
The menus are still under wraps but chef Fisherkeller said they plan to source locally, from the farmers market when they can, and have a range of options from small plates to full-scale entrees for dinner.
Brunch will have lots of familiar favorites but with surprising twists, he said, such as the French toast with bourbon salted caramel, blueberries and a cured egg yolk. Or potato hash with house bacon, Calabrian Chili Relish, smoked Gouda cream and over-easy egg.
ELIXIR Downtown will open on Friday night with hostess for seating and will not do advance reservations at the moment. Starting out they will have with limited hours and seating indoors and outdoors to meet COVID safety restrictions.
“There’s still a concern in the community about coming, although people do want to,” Scaldaferri said. “People are saying, ‘where can I go and be safe.’”
One thing he isn’t concerned about: The ongoing protests downtown and around Cheapside, a former slave auction site, in the wake of the death of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor. Scaldaferri, who is a former University of Kentucky kicker and is also co-owner with Dougie and Ieasha Allen in Creaux across the street, said that he and his staff fully support the Black Lives Matter movement.
“We need to come together as a community, and opening now is our way of supporting that,” Scaldaferri said. “We have a very diverse clientele at Creaux and that’s what we hope for at ELIXIR, too.”
ELIXIR Downtown
Where: 249 West Short St.
Opens: June 12
Hours: Thursday through Sunday, 5 to 10 p.m.; brunch Saturday and Sunday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Hours will expand in July to 5 p.m. to 2 a.m.
Call: 859-244-1932
Online: facebook.com/elixirdowntown/
This story was originally published June 11, 2020 at 5:14 PM.
