A successful opening.

"But I thought you were already open?"

Yes and no. So last night was the final stage of getting things up and running here. We officially launched the Arthouse Cafe, which is housed in the upstairs space of the Warehouse. The goal is to serve higher end food then the pub menu. Eventually the goal will be to have the pub food downstairs and the higher end food upstairs, but for now you can get whichever menu you want regardless of floor.

We served 43 dishes, which in the grander scale of our careers was not a lot, but is the most we have done since we have been here. And all the reviews were postive - even the gentleman who got the wrong dish. (We have a couple of issues with the waitstaff that we still need to sort out.) Right now we have coupons all over town offering 50% off your meal and the hope is that once more people eat here the buzz will start and we will be off the ground.

Here's the menu:

Starters

1. Warehouse Spring Rolls
Fresh rice paper rolls with raw vegetables and fresh mango

2. Crab Cakes
House-made and served with a spicy mayo and Asian slaw

3. Curried Potato Wontons
Curry potatoes wrapped in wontons and served with a spicy Khmer tomato sauce

4. Lettuce Wrap
A spicy chicken and peanut mix served with organic greens

5. Mushroom Tempura
Local mushrooms wok fried and served with a soy dipping sauce

Salads

6. Warehouse Salad
A house salad served with organic greens, tomato, carrot, cucumber, toasted cashews and a light citrus vinaigrette

7. Pineapple and Tomato Salad
Fresh tomato and pineapple salad served with fresh herds and a mildly spicy Asian vinaigrette

8. Shredded Vegetable Salad
A fresh slaw including cabbage, carrots, and radish served with a creamy miso dressing

Entrees

10. Asian Duck Noodles
Ginger sautéed duck with cucumber, carrot, and cabbage served over vermicelli with a Khmer sweet chili sauce

A. with Tofu

11. Vegetable Polenta
Roasted vegetables served over fresh basil polenta with a Khmer red curry sauce

12. Cold Sesame Noodles
A Warehouse mock-up of a Chinese favorite. Served with bell peppers, carrots, cucumber and your choice of:

A. Chicken
B. Tofu

13. Steak and Potatoes
Tender beef cooked to order topped with a caramelised Mekong whiskey onion sauce and served with mashed potatoes

14. Pan Roasted Grouper
Pan roasted Grouper served with a Khmer caramel sauce, rice and vegetables

15. Beef Negimaki
Beef rolled with scallion and topped with a house-made teriyaki sauce. Served with rice and vegetables.

16. Roast Pork
Roast Pork served with a Hoisin BBQ sauce. Served with rice and vegetables

Dessert

18. Banana Fritters with Caramel Sauce

19. Crème Brulee

20. Fruit Salad with Candied Cashews

21. Chocolate Pudding Cake with fresh whipped cream