Public House

Making the community feel at home

Anticipation has been building in Bloomfield. The new name and branding for Chef Elliott Reynolds and Sommellier Laura Borutski’s new place has been a well-kept secret by them for a while now, and the time has finally come for the two to spill the beans. Bloomfield Public House (BPH) is the name of the new establishment, and the two are hoping that it will be a great neighbourhood spot.

They are looking to honour the heritage of the area and provide a great dining experience to boot. Public House is where the term pub comes from, and it’s defined by most as a community or neighbourhood establishment that sells food with both alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks. The vagueness of the term Public House, by its definition, is the exact thing that allows Reynolds and Borutski to explore fully the ideas and concepts they have had in their brains and possibly on the backburner for years. With no borders, they can do what they want to do when they want to do it. Expect the menu from Chef Reynolds to fluctuate regularly, as well as the wine and cocktail list from Borutski.

Laura Borutski and Elliott Reynolds in the entrance of the Bloomfield Public House’s new coffee shop, which should open in a few weeks.

As for making the space their own, the two have done a lot of the work on BPH themselves. The demolition and painting of the establishment has been on their shoulders, and their eagerness to get their first restaurant opened as soon possible meant that they have been working on weekends and holidays to get the project to the finish line faster. The interior room now has a vaulted ceiling on one half where the couple took out the second floor of the building. The move brought significantly more light and a nice open-air feel to the dining area. The walls are to be adorned with a combination of old and new decor, and will also feature some heritage photos of the Bloomfield area given to the couple by local historian Dorothy Fraleigh.

Possibly the most interesting thing is that neither of them had ever embarked on a project such as this. Neither had ever torn apart a building before. It was an experience that they took on together and they have been putting their own personal sweat equity into the place for months. Borutski wants that to be felt when people come to visit.

“I want people to know that we’ve worked on the place ourselves. It’s been really hard work, but also a lot of fun. I want them to feel it when they are here. We can’t wait to open the doors in a few weeks and welcome everyone into the space,” says Borutski.

There will be a first phase to BPH. It will open up as a coffee shop with a patio along Main Street for the first few weeks until the final touches are put into the restaurant side. The coffee shop will be open seven days a week. What’s unique is the couple’s openness for everyone to observe the process of their opening. While the coffee shop is operating there will be no drop curtains or partitions separating the two rooms. The couple will be working towards the opening while technically being open. It does sound a little crazy, but Reynolds and Borutski want the public’s opinions and seem welcome to the input of anyone who has taken an interest in the place. As one can imagine, for a small town, they have not had a shortage of people come forward to offer opinions on the building. Instead of shutting the doors and putting brown paper on the windows, BPH will be flipping the game and letting everyone take a look at the progress and offer an opinion. It also takes the edge off of a “grand opening” scenario that can be so stressful, because anyone who wants to can take look before the opening.

Heritage pictures from Bloomfield will be showcased on the walls of the new restaurant.

In building their own restaurant, there were two main pieces that had to be right. There had to be a bar. Not only a bar, but a big bar. The bar at BPH starts at the coffee shop and winds its way around the kitchen and through to the dining room. Bar dining is near and dear to their hearts. In fact, the two prefer to eat at the bar when eating out. It’s a level of comfort that they want in their place. The second piece is the kitchen design, which revolves again around an open process. Chef Reynolds wants to be able to interact with diners and feel the vibe of the dining room. The open-concept kitchen is a huge element in the interactive environment the two are striving for. It’s something that Reynolds is also looking forward to.

“I won’t be able to have my head down all the time. I want to see who’s here and what they are eating and drinking. I don’t want my kitchen to feel separated from the dining room and the patrons. I want them to see what we do in the kitchen as well,” says Reynolds.

The kitchen is being installed at BPH this week, as well as the lengthy bar. Every item installed is one more off the checklist for Reynolds and Borutski.

The energy of seeing the finish line will propel the couple over the final few hurdles. The crazy thing about the restaurant industry is that the finish line is actually a starting line as well. Two lines in one.