UPTOWN — Andy Kalish said he plans to continue to provide his neighbors with the foods they "crave" with his second restaurant on Wilson Avenue.
Longacre is currently under construction and is slated to open between his short-order vegan spot Kal'ish and the current Baker and Nosh location in Uptown. The restaurant, which he's nicknamed "Pizza Box" because of its location, has been in the planning for nearly 15 years, he said.
"When my wife and I left Earth Market we envisioned all of this, in part," Kalish said. "We didn't know we would be doing vegan, but we hoped there would be a desire, not a need for the food we've been offering to our neighbors."
The husband and wife team of Kalish and Gina Marino-Kalish got their start in vegetarian and vegan cuisine running the small catering company at 1224 W. Wilson Ave. in the late '90s and early 2000s. After some changes in the business, the company shuttered after the birth of their son.
Longacre, which will serve pizza, pasta bakes, soups and salads at 1309 W. Wilson Ave., will hopefully be "and option people want" and are "joyous" about, he said.
The pizza will combine Roman-style and Detroit-style pizzas. It will be available in a 14-inch square or in a "generous" by-the-slice combo with a pop for $5. The larger option will retail between $14-$23, he said.
While Kal'ish, 1303 W. Wilson Ave., only serves vegan options, "Pizza Box" will have a deck oven for its vegan options and another for its meat offerings. The new restaurant will also borrow some salad options from Kal'ish, he said.
Some of the meat offerings will even be made in-house, including lamb, pork and chicken, he said.
"Nothing we serve would likely be on the shelf of a conventional grocer," he said.
The restaurant will have seating for about 12 people, plus counter space, but customers indulging on veggie options can bring their food into Kal'ish next door, he said.
Longacre hopes to open in the next two months, but the holidays could delay construction, he said.
Andy Kalish is the owner of Kal'ish and Longacre on Wilson Avenue. [DNAinfo/Josh McGhee]
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