HARD HAT REPORT: PETITE MAISON WITH JAMES PORTER
Table Talk
This new place better be good or we’ll be really F-in pissed.
When Tapino closed, you caught everybody by surprise – a quick decision to turn off the lights faster than you can pull off a band-aid – Hey man, we know how it goes. But in the same fashion, you renovated a tiny building (formerly Buckets) down the block from the W Scottsdale and you’ve set an opening date of August 23. Bravo! Your French bistro, Petite Maison, will soon be filled with curious diners of all types.
Maison, to date, has all the right ingredients:
Small—22 seats in the dining room, 11 at the bar, and 30-40 tops outside.
Affordable—all wines are French and average about $7/glass (bottles ‘bout $20-$60). There’s an $8 burger, $8 dinner apps, $18 double cut lamb chop, $13 house-made charcuterie, and other items that don’t feel gouge-y. Yep, we said gouge-y.
Staff—Over 75% of the Maison staff comes from Tapino. Those kids are great and we’ll be happy to see them back in action soon.
Open late—dinner at 11? We’ll be there.
Central—that’s the beauty of Old Town. Everyone from your Robert Graham-wearing Scottsdalers to your faux-urbanist Phoenicians to your adventurous Chandler folk will gladly head to Old Town for lunch or dinner.
Twitter—You’re the first guy in AZ to figure out how to use this seemingly pointless social media tool properly. Sure, other chefs Twitter to alert regulars of specials or other irregular news, but you plan on tweeting every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday night announcing the “Staff Meal”—the Frenchiest of French fare available only from 10pm to midnight. Dig it.
So here’s hopin’ the food’s killer and the price is right and the vibe is cool, because your Maison recipe sounds perfect. If it doesn’t work out, we’ll be really F-in bummed, man. Seriously bummed — But hey, no pressure.
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I love James’ shirt.