Market Square takes up the full block on Market, between Ninth and Tenth. Photo via Market Square
Matt Semmelhack. Photo: The Chronicle
Matt Semmelhack and Mark Liberman ? the team behind the celebrated AQ in SoMa ? are the first restaurant tenants of the big Market Square development (a.k.a. the Twitter building), where they plan to open a street-level, all-day brasserie and bar named Bon March?.
The name refers to several things. Le Bon March? is the famous Parisian department store, which dates back to the 1830s, making it one of the world?s first (and most beautiful) department stores; its name influenced a Seattle branch in the early 20th century that eventually became a part of Macy?s. The retailer and department store context is a sly wink to the Market Square building?s former life as the S.F. Furniture Mart. Plus, the French connection is a nod to the building?s Art Deco roots, Semmelhack says, which they?ll try to maintain.
Of course, with Bon March?, there?s also the translation to ?good market? ? and the location is directly on Market Street and the mid-Market neighborhood.
Liberman will be the executive chef, and the food will be contemporary Californian brasserie fare. What does that mean? Like traditional brasseries, the 125-seat Bon March? will be open all day, and the plan is to create a bustling environment and bar scene. There will be a large menu and a big emphasis on a raw bar (yes, there will be seafood plateaus), though the food will be more modern twists on classics, similar to what they do at AQ ? familiar reference points, envisioned in new, fun ways, Semmelhack says. The price point will be lower than AQ.
Chef Mark Liberman preparing one of his dishes at AQ. Photo: The Chronicle
On the bar side, plans call for a full liquor license, and like AQ, cocktails are hoped to be a strong point. While the food will skew toward the modern and Californian, the bar program will likely slant toward the French brasserie classics a little more. Also, AQ?s beverage director Kristen Capella wants to have the largest sparkling wine collection in the country.
Since it?s an all-day affair, Bon March? will offer coffee and simple breakfast in the mornings; they?re playing with ideas on making physical changes throughout the day to the restaurant ? or a possible 60-foot bar ? to utilize the space for the appropriate time of day.
BCV Architects, who did the reimagined Ferry Building (among others), is spearheading the design of Market Square, and it?s likely they?ll be involved in Bon March? as well. The 7,300 square foot restaurant space is full of ?soaring? ceilings and fat concrete columns, with entrances from Market Street and both the old and new lobbies. A full build-out is required, and it will be a few months before construction even begins, so the entire project is still 18-24 months away, and that?s the earliest ETA.
Shorenstein Properties, the developers/visionaries behind the entire Market Square project, still have a few more restaurant/bar spaces available, so it should be interesting to see who snatches them up now that the first lease has been signed. Meanwhile, Semmelhack and Liberman are still working on their other new project, next door to AQ, which now carries the moniker of TBD.
? Previously: Twitter building Market Square courts local chefs and restaurateurs [Inside Scoop]
? Previously: AQ expanding its SoMa presence with a new restaurant next door [Inside Scoop]
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