A new dining option is opening at Black Star Farms in Suttons Bay next month.
Bistro Polaris, led by Black Star’s new estate chef, John Korycki, will feature Mediterranean-inspired cuisine in the renovated space that used to house the Hearth & Vine Café.
The menu will combine global flavors with locally sourced ingredients, some grown on Black Star’s own property and some from nearby farms. Guests will be able to order Neapolitan-style wood-fired pizzas, panini, salads, and artisanal appetizers such as focaccia bites made with Black Star’s Pinot Noir grape flour.
Korycki, who specializes in Italian cooking, is well versed in the farm-to-table model from his time working at the upscale restaurant Zazios in Kalamazoo. “[I] worked with a lot of local farms,” he says. Now, he’ll be using that model at Bistro Polaris.
“[We’re] going to do our best to keep it as seasonal as possible and to build our relationships with a lot of the local farmers around here,” he says.
“There’s going to be a lot of great produce coming here in the next month and a half and height of summer,” he adds, “so I’m excited to put that into our menu.”
The year-round restaurant will have both indoor and outdoor seating. As part of the renovations, Black Star is brightening up the interior and adding French bistro-style seating, says managing owner Sherri Campbell Fenton. Guests sitting outside on the patio, she adds, can “catch a glimpse of the horses” or see some of the grape harvest happen in the fall.
The bistro will be open for lunch on Thursdays through Saturdays, for dinner on Wednesdays through Saturdays, and for brunch on Sundays. Wednesday evenings will feature special chef dinners with preset menus; guests will need to buy tickets beforehand. Advance registration is also preferred for Sunday brunch.
The regular chef dinners will make Black Star’s unique dining more accessible, Campbell Fenton says. Typically, she says, Black Star’s Arcturos dining series, with its prix fixe menus and wine pairings, only takes place a half-dozen times a year at most, so many people who would like to attend simply can’t. Bistro Polaris will make it easier for more visitors to have that experience.
“Oftentimes, people might just be visiting the region for one week out of the summer, so this allows them an opportunity to experience a chef dinner paired with wine during that week that they’re here — because we will be hosting these every week,” Campbell Fenton says. “So that’s a nice opportunity for people. I’ve often heard, ‘Oh, I’d love to come to one of your Arcturos wine pair dinners, but we won’t be up there at that time.’ So this is just putting that opportunity in front of people on a weekly basis.”
Learn more about Bistro Polaris at blackstarfarms.com/bistro-polaris, and keep an eye on Black Star’s website and social media for an announcement about the restaurant’s opening day in June.
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