Yardbird Southern Table & Bar Taking Over Pinot Brasserie

It's finally official. After teasing that Yardbird Southern Table & Bar was coming to the Palazzo, then the Venetian, word is finally out that the chicken restaurant from 50 Eggs Inc. out of Miami will open in the former Pinot Brasserie space in early 2015, right next to Daniel Boulud's brand-spanking new DB Brasserie.

Restaurateur John Kunkel brings many of his Miami version's design and menu staples, but the restaurant will take up a much larger footprint at 8,000 square feet. The space will seat 180 guests in the main dining room and two private rooms. A huge bar will help the 50 Eggs team expand its beverage program that includes an exclusive ice program, complete with a special on-site ice room where mixologists will "harvest" hand-cut blocks.

Yardbird is probably best known for its fried chicken. It was a James Beard Foundation semi-finalist for Best New Restaurant South and was named one of Bon Appétit's 50 Best New Restaurants in 2012.

Antique candlestick holders, wildflowers on all the tables and handmade light fixtures outfitted with Edison bulbs in Mason jars give the space a Southern touch.

"The larger space is definitely giving us extra room to play," Kunkel says in a press release. "The menu and bar programs will feature many of our hallmarks, including our outstanding brunch and signature Guest Chef Series, as well as a number of singular elements. Our goal is for Yardbird to stand out from its neighbors, both in- and outside of the Venetian itself."

The restaurant group teases that it does plan additional expansions nationwide as well.
· All Coverage of Yardbird Southern Table & Bar [~ELV~]