Staff Blog
Feb. 16 the day for Garces Trading Company
posted by Drew Lazor
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It was just announced that Garces Trading Company (1111 Locust St.), Iron Chef Jose Garces‘ gourmet market/cafĂ©, will open to the public next Tuesday, Feb. 16. (Garces shared some preliminary details on the project with Meal Ticket back in September ‘09 , and Jamie of Midtown Lunch recently poked her head in for some in-the-works photos.) The space’ll act as a shop for Garces-branded food products (cheese accompaniments from Amada; Garces’ own roasted coffee beans; house-cured charcuterie; house-baked bread; “GTC at Home” heat-and-serve dishes) as well as a sit-down to grab fresh-made sandwiches, cheese plates, housemade pasta dishes (pappardelle with lamb ragu; fusilli alla carbonara with guanciale — cheektastic!) and comfort-food-y daily specials (Monday will be “coq au vin day,” for example). GTC wil be open weekdays from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Sunday from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.; the cafĂ© will serve from 11 to 10 daily.
Perhaps the most noteworthy (and controversial) aspect of GTC is its PLCB-leased wine boutique, which’ll feature more than 200 international wine and spirits selections. This partnership between a restaurateur* and the state-run Liquor Control Board is the first of its kind, and it’s been met with protest by a number of local bar/restaurant owners who feel the union creates an unlevel playing field. The issue is discussed further on the Web site of the PA Restaurants for Fair Competition coalition.
* This post has been edited to properly reflect the nature of Garces’ partnership with the PLCB.
First of its kind? There was a PLCB boutique in Food Source at rt 1 & 202 (back when it was still open). I thought that was just one of several in a pilot program.
Livia:
The wine boutique at Garces Trading Company is the first example of the PLCB’s initiative involving the Board teaming up with local chefs/restaurateurs. The PLCB boutique in the Food Source was a “One Stop Shop,” aka a Wine & Spirits operating out of an existing grocery store, as opposed to a free-standing location. Sorry for the confusion. I’ve edited the post to make this more clear.
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