For 19 months, one of the most beautiful restaurant spaces in Chilliwack sat vacant.
But with its sky-high ceilings, decadent wrought iron details, and elegant chandeliers, it was only a matter of time before a new restauranteur moved in and made himself at home.
And that's exactly what Matt Bergin is doing, as executive chef and manager of the newly-opened Brixton Restaurant. He opened the doors to the public on Jan. 17, after months of cleaning up, training staff and readying for the new adventure. Prior to opening Brixton, Bergin was the head chef at Frankie's Italian Kitchen.
While preparing the new digs, set prominently in the downtown Safeway plaza, the front door was popping open all day with curious diners happy to see the building coming back to life.
"The biggest thing about Brixton is the building," Bergin said. "People love this building. It's one of the nicest ones in Chilliwack."
He's built a menu that will appeal to most diners, he said, with a wide range of portion sizes and prices. The hope is that they remain open to a wide demographic, pleasing every diner around the table.
"We're focusing on putting the package together and raising the bar," he said.
It's a bit of an art form, creating a menu that works for the restaurant. And at Brixton, they are fine tuning their choices by scratching off a few of the less popular options and replacing them with new ones.
And to keep things interesting, every few weeks he creates a new 'fresh sheet' with dishes featuring seasonal ingredients. Right now, that includes seared tuna.
Something that will likely stay on the menu is a fun, not-so-little drink that could double as a meal.
The Ultimate Brixton Caesar is garnished with pepperoni, a blazed bean, celery, jumbo prawn and even a 4 oz. blackened 'AAA' Canadian tenderloin filet.
"It's a novelty thing," Bergin said, but one that people are really taking to.
Brixton Restaurant opens its doors at 11 a.m. seven days a week. It closes at 11 p.m. from Sundays to Wednesdays, and midnights Thursdays to Saturdays.
To see Brixton’s menu, visit www.brixtonrestaurant.com.