Businesses, like movies, should get creative when it comes to naming sequels. The photo above shows the Nichols building, home to the latest Platte Street branch of Galvanize, which got its start as a techy, entrepreneurial and educational something-or-other (hey, I write about food) in the Golden Triangle just a few years ago and has already reached its tentacles into three other states and several other Colorado cities. Because of branding, this location is called Galvanize, too, but I'd suggest something a little more catchy, like Galvanize: The Reckoning, or Galvanize, Too! Maybe the Galvanize group should talk to their new building mates: Steve Redzikowski and Bryan Dayton, the guys behind Boulder's Oak at Fourteenth and its RiNo spinoff Acorn, understand the idea of keeping things fresh. They're opening a new eatery inside the Nichols building too and, although you might expect another tree-themed moniker, they're calling it Brider, the French culinary term for trussing meat for roasting.
True to the name, Brider (pronounced bri-day, but Redzikowski says you can just call it Bride-rr) will showcase a custom-built French Rotisol rotisserie oven where whole chickens, legs of lamb, briskets and porchetta will be bound in string and spit-turned over gas flames until juicy and sizzling. The idea is in keeping with the rustic, wood-fired cookery at Oak and Acorn, but Brider will ditch table service in favor of a walk-up counter and will be open for breakfast, lunch and dinner to give the neighborhood a more casual taste of what Denver and Boulder have come to love in Dayton and Redzikowski's previous efforts.
"It will be a chef's take on fast-casual," Redzikowski explains. "We're looking at food first," he adds, eschewing the standard protein and starch mix-and-match common in the fast-casual sector. "We'll be fresh and seasonal, changing the menu at least every quarter. Our goal is to source out fresh, seasonal items and highlight those."
And although rotisserie meats give the restaurant its name, the chef says that Oak and Acorn have been operating under the premise of "instead of thinking protein first, think vegetable first," so Brider will also include rotisserie-roasted vegetables (cooked in specially fitted baskets) and other dishes that balance produce and meats. Breakfast will include granola, stone-ground grits and house-made English muffins. Lunch and dinner menus will feature hearty, family-oriented food with French touches — bouillabaisse for example. Fans of Redzikowski's cooking will be happy to know that Oak's popular meatballs will also make the cut.
For Brider, they've also hired a pastry chef, Michael Conti, for the first time in their partnership. He'll be in charge of sweet and savory pastries at Brider and will also be consulting on pastries for the other two restaurants. "I've been working on breads myself," notes Redzikowski, who has developed an obsession with perfecting yeast-risen dough. The Grateful Bread Company will continue to provide top-notch products, too.
Dayton's expertise lies in the realm of beverage service, and he'll have eighteen taps to play with at Brider. "Bryan is going to have four red wines, four white wines, four kegged house cocktails and four beers," explains Redzikowski. The other two taps could go toward nitro cold-brew coffee or other non-alcoholic drinks. And since the restaurant will be open for breakfast, Dayton is also working with Boxcar Coffee Roasters on a custom-made coffee-brewing system.
The team has tapped two-year company veteran Chase Devitt to head the Brider kitchen. In keeping with its modern new digs, Brider will have a sharper, more modern look than either the industrial Acorn or the more rustic Oak. Redzikowski and Dayton are aiming for an early- to mid-November opening.