Roughly 10 years ago, Jason Ruhe and Hope Montgomery began In Bloom, a catering service that has provided for customers from Tampa to St. Pete Beach and everywhere in between. For the last decade, they've been based out of Tampa but after finding a majority of their business coming from St. Pete and St. Pete Beach, they thought it was time for a move.
Their concept is called Brick and Mortar. While the original signage identified it as a wine bar, Jason and Hope have since expanded on the original idea. "We didn't want to pigeonhole ourselves," said Ruhe. He's been actively engaged in the culinary arts since he was 7 years old.
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With a Cuban grandmother on one side and an Indonesian grandmother on the other, to call his palate 'eclectic' would be an understatement.
Montgomery has been in the service and hospitality industry since she was 16. Her experience in watching restaurants successfully grow and develop dedicated clients has been an invaluable resource. Jason and Hope met while bartending at Sangria in the Channelside District in Tampa.
10 years later, they now have a prospering catering business and a soon to open wine bar and kitchen on the ever-growing 500 block of Central Avenue. The interior boasts hand-painted deep purple walls. Palettes hang above the bar and around the restaurant. "We're working with Jamie O'Berry to bring in some of her plants. We want the inside to feel like a piece of natural art." Ruhe and Montgomery both gushed at the outpouring of support they've received from local businesses. They plan on paying it forward.
On tap and bottled, they offer Green Bench, Cycle Brewing and St. Petersburg Brewing. Brick and Mortar will also feature craft brews from Cigar City and a few more from staple Tampa Bay breweries.
Lined on the mantel above the bar is a collection of unique cookbooks. "This is what we read. We love food and we love refining and developing our own craft in the kitchen," says Montgomery. Ruhe adds, "We want our customers to feel free and take one down and read." The cookbooks feature more than your garden variety of meatloaf, chicken cordon bleu and angel food cake.
Ruhe and Montgomery have found inspiration in the selected texts to develop dishes such as a decadent ox tail plate and lavender panna cotta. However, their cardamom stone fruit infused cobbler may be the most deliciously curious item they revealed. Brick and Mortar will offer an array of small plate items and entrees.
The wine selection is equally diverse. "We're wine lovers," says Montgomery, "we want to offer St. Pete a selection of labels they might not find anywhere else." They also don't want to make anyone feel intimidated by their selection. The labels and tastes are tangible to all, from novice (i.e. me) to experts.
They offer a selection of Mouton Noir wines – their favorite label being Horseshoes and Hand Grenades – and a Hungarian Ferment they're excited to start pouring.
Brick and Mortar will open sometime within the next two weeks. Once open, their speculative hours will be 4-10pm on Wednesday and Thursdays, and 4-10:30pm on Friday and Saturdays. As they continue cultivating a relationship with the Burg, you can expect to see their hours expand and eventually add Tuesday to the mix.
Brick and Mortar is located at 539 Central Avenue. Find them on Facebook for an anticipated announcement of their official opening.
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