An opening date has been set for a highly anticipated incoming restaurant in Mount Pleasant.
El Gato Gab Gab's doors will be opening in short order, on Aug. 29.
“Our team has been working hard in preparing El Gato for its debut, and we are excited to welcome guests in to experience our version of a botanero – a lively, beverage-focused snack bar typically found in the southern region of Mexico,” says Cody Allmin, co-founder of Boxset Collective, in a press release.
The Boxset Collective is the same team behind award-winning Published on Main and Bar Susu.
The incoming restaurant at 2650 Main St. will have a variety of snack items executive chef Christian Chaumont has created mixing modern Mexican styles through a local lens.
"Guests can choose from a selection of botanas (snacks), including Chicken Skin Chilaquiles (onsen egg, burnt eggplant); Mexican Street Corn (cornbread custard, kimchi queso), and Veracruz Grilled Squid (puerco del rancho, cannellini bean)," reads the press release.
There will also be five build-your-own-taco options including fish, beef and vegetarian.
At the bar beverage director Joe Casson is overseeing a drinks menu with options like There & Oaxaca, Again (Birria Pechuga Mezcal, Cenotes Reposado, green coffee, guajillo) and Isn’t This a Coffee Bar (Nodo Coffee Tequilana, amaretto, spiced cold brew, cherry).
El Gato Gab Gab will be open daily from 4 p.m. until late (later on weekends). No reservations are being taken at this point; it will be walk-ins only. While Aug. 29 is the official opening date, there may be soft opening days beforehand.
Main Street space scene of shifting concepts over the past two years
Boxset debuted Novella in December 2022 as the restaurant group explored coffee and daytime eats (including a now-sorely missed breakfast sandwich). They added an evening concept in the space, Vignette, which focuses on wine and snacks.
However, when Bar Susu was taken offline by a fire last summer, Vignette folded to make room for Novella's space to serve as Bar Susu's temporary home. Not long after Bar Susu returned to its own Mount Pleasant space, Boxset brought Novella to its end and created the opportunity to redevelop the location into what we now know as El Gato.
With files from Lindsay William-Ross
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