Merende small news bite

KEN SWARNER: CHAT WITH JEFF BISHOP >>>

Jeff Bishop, the chef behind the original Il Fiasco and Brix 25, will open Il Trattoria di Merende restaurant with his partner, Ian Lombardi, also a former Il Fiasco chef, in six to seven weeks.  Merende (meaning “small bites”) will open in late May or June at 813 Pacific Ave. (former Vin Grotto space) — all depending, Bishop says, on the myriad of things that need to get done in order to open a restaurant. 

Bishop told the Weekly Volcano today that the menu will, of course, be Italian with special emphasis on small plates to be shared.  They’ll feature locally produced, organic ingredients as much as possible inside a homey decor with straw and terracotta colors.

Bishop — chomping at the bit to open — says “these things are a process and take time.”