Lexington restaurant moving into Nick Ryan’s spot in Jefferson St. dining district
A Lexington restaurant known for its innovative fine dining is moving to a new spot after six years.
Owner Mark Wombles announced that Distilled is leaving The Sire Hotel, formerly Gratz Park Inn, on Second Street.
“We have been looking for a while. I would say for probably three years,” owner and chef Wombles said Tuesday.
Then a spot came open in one of the city’s hot dining districts.
The restaurant is moving into 157 Jefferson Street, the former Nick Ryan’s.
Nick Ryan’s has been closed since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic in March and the restaurant’s owners announced in May it would not be reopening.
But the spot has great perks, said Wombles, including a “huge covered patio” with a heater and a smaller secondary patio, which will be used to augment inside seating.
As restaurants have adjusted to limited seating capacity due to COVID, many have had to add outdoor seating for safety.
They also will have off-street parking as well as much higher visibility, he said.
“We just had challenges,” he said. “We didn’t have a storefront. Our storefront was the hotel store front. And there are not a lot of windows so we were easily forgotten about. We wanted to be seen, we wanted busier area, and we wanted to be around other restaurants. That’s very important for cross pollination. Customers come down to eat at one place, think ‘next time I’ll try that one.’”
Distilled’s last day at the location in the hotel will be Sept. 26, he said. They anticipate reopening about a week later on Jefferson Street, barring complications.
The new version will be similar to what has proven popular already although some menu changes are coming, he said.
“We’re going to keep doing what we do, but make it a little more comfortable, slightly more relaxed and that goes for the menu as well,” Wombles said. “We’re still in the process of writing the menu but we’ll have all the favorites, like our popular filet. We’re not changing any of that. But what we are going to do is add some relaxed plates and at a lower price point.”
Distilled was named one of the 50 best Southern restaurants in 2018 by OpenTable. Wombles works with local farmers to source high quality ingredients for his restaurants in Lexington and Midway, including Heirloom and Mezzo.
Wombles said he also is planning some changes for his Heirloom restaurant in Midway: “We will rent a theater next door for more seating,” he said. “We can spread people out all over it this winter.”
A spokesman for Rolling Hills Hospitality, which owns The Sire Hotel, said that they are still working on a replacement for Distilled. The boutique hotel is part of the Hilton Tapestry Collection.
