April Bloomfield and Ken Friedman Gear Up For Their First LA Opening Next Month

Chef April Bloomfield and restaurateur Ken Friedman are only about a month away from the opening of their new restaurant on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood, with a debut out on the big, wide patio scheduled for September. There’s still a lot to know about the restaurant in the meantime, though, including what the name will actually be, and what the final menu will look like.

Bloomfield and Friedman spot to LA Magazine about the upcoming project, which takes over for the former Cat & Fiddle, right down the street from Curtis Stone hotspot Gwen. The previous tenants were then forced to move over around the corner to Highland, and now Cat & Fiddle lives on in a different notable space: Susan Feniger’s shuttered Mud Hen Tavern.

Now the team is tracking for an arrival in a matter of weeks, though construction walls are still blocking views from out on Sunset Boulevard. That’s because the patio, pushed right out front with mature trees overhead and brick under foot, is the crown jewel of the whole place — Friedman has previously called it an “enchanted garden” — so no point in showing it off until things are looking perfectly ready.

The Cat & Fiddle

On the food front, Friedman tells LA Mag that this won’t be another Spotted Pig (“we wanted to make a new album,” says the former band manager), with Bloomfield adding that there will be plenty of wood-fired cooking on site. That means, in some cases, game birds, whole roasted animals, and plenty of pan-Mediterranean flavors. Good thing they’ve already hired Logmeh chef and Eater Young Guns winner Debb Michail.

A couple of other fun tidbits from the piece: Bloomfield says she’s planning to move to Los Angeles, at least at the outset of the opening. And, if she stays, that could mea big news for future projects along the way. Oh, and one of the quieter investors in this new venture? None other than serial LA restaurateur Bill Chait, who reportedly came on for logistical support.

Lastly, the name. Friedman says he tends to hold off on officially titling any project until just about the last minute. That’s been true for The Breslin and other places in New York and San Francisco, so it’s possible the world will not hear the true title of the restaurant until just days before opening. Which, if things continue to shape up on schedule, could be as soon as a month.

• Sound the Alarm: April Bloomfield Is Definitely Opening Her First LA Restaurant [ELA]