For forever and a day I’ve been hoping that Chippewa would start to generate more daytime food operations. Answering that call to duty, Brian Mietus, chef/owner of Bacchus, has decided to move forward with a micro-market concept that will revolve around the rotisserie. With Bacchus firmly rooted in the district – considered a “big hit” in downtown Buffalo – Mietus thought that it was time to create what he is calling a “B-side track.”
bSide Market will be opening in the former Mighty Taco location. When Mietus heard that the fast food joint did not survive the pandemic, he knew that he had the perfect plan for the space tucked away in his back pocket. It was all about the timing. And that’s what entrepreneurs do best!
“Everybody laughed that I needed another project,” said Mietus [laughing]. “But it sounded like a good opportunity. Once we open sometime in late June, early July, we will be occupying the entire first floor of the Calumet building (between Bacchus and bSIDE Market). It’s an awesome building and corner.”
Mietus said that the rotisserie element will be greatly enhanced by the “chef-driven concept.” Yes, there “might” be chicken spit-roasting, if that’s what the chef wants to cook on a particular day. But then again, there might be ribeye or pork butt instead. The formula will change from day to day. bSIDE Market will have signature sandwiches and salads, as well as daily specials, some Bacchus classics, frozen soups, some jarred goods, and other items inspired by Bacchus’s catering/meal prep and private chef services. There will be plenty of menu items to eat in house, and plenty of other grab-n-go items to take home.
“We will keep it fresh and keep changing it up,” Mietus told me. “There will be a walk-up counter where people can order. From there, they can take the food with them, eat inside the restaurant, or take their meals to the back courtyard – we’re blowing the wall out in back to open it up!”
Mietus mentioned that the whole chef-inspired quick-service concept is in part due to talking to a couple of his chef buddies that have been heading in similar directions. He tipped his hat to Alex Seidel in Denver (James Beard Award recipient) and Mike Johnson in St. Louis (worked with the likes of Emeril Lagasse and Charlie Trotter) who are both hot on this sort of concept.
“This is the future of food,” said Mietus. “These chefs have accomplished everything that they set out to do, but this is what they love – the chef-driven fast food concept. It’s going to be a lot of fun, and I think that people are going to love it.”
Mietus told me that for as long as Bacchus has been around (20 years), he has heard that there would be a project coming for new Chippewa street infrastructure. “They just started ripping up the street,” he said [laughing]. “I couldn’t have timed the opening of bSIDE any better… at the end of a pandemic and with a street under construction.”
Knowing Mietus, and now knowing the new concept, I don’t think that a pandemic or a torn-up street will stop people from supporting his new undertaking. I believe that bSIDE is on track to become a big hit, in a city that is about to undergo another exciting restaurant revolution.
bSIDE Market | 52 W Chippewa Street | Buffalo, NY 14202