Boychik is getting a sibling.
Chase Devitt and Charles Troup, the owners of the Mediterranean concept, are set to debut a new spot in Stanley Marketplace, where Boychik has one of its three locations.
Sorella, Italian for “sister,” will serve sandwiches, charcuterie and take-and-bake pastas when it opens in November.
“Chase and I have found we have the most success when we love what we’re making,” Troup told BusinessDen. “And I love sandwiches. If you said ‘What is your island food?’ Give me the sandwich category and I’d be fine.”
Devitt, a former chef at the shuttered Platte Street eatery Brider as well as the high-end Boulder restaurant Oak at Fourteenth, said the menu will feature items like a chicken parmesan sandwich, an eggplant sandwich with roasted red pepper jelly and feta and a heatable, pre-packaged spaghetti and meatballs.
They’ll operate Sorella out of a 400-square-foot stall, different from the sit-down space they have for Boychik at Stanley. Every individual meal will be under $20, Troup said. Devitt has been testing out recipes in his home kitchen ahead of the opening, as he often does before debuting a new spot.
“One of the reasons we love food stalls is I think the structure does allow us to save on some overhead and pass those savings on to the guests,” said Troup, who has a 25-year career in restaurants. He’s worked for Sage Hospitality and other local spots like Safta, as well as been the owner-operator of Gorlami Pizza in the Avanti Food & Beverage hall in Denver.
“They’ll get the exact high-quality ingredients you want and still be at $17 for spaghetti and meatballs,” he added of Sorella.
He and Devitt, who have been best friends since growing up together in Minneapolis decades ago, are spending $50,000 for equipment and another $50,000 to remodel the Sorella space. They’ll hire 10 more staffers to help run the place, adding to the 20 to 25 they have working at Boychik.
They signed a three-year lease for the stall at Stanley, which was recently acquired by local developer Magnetic Capital for $41 million.
“We actually talked with Stanley (ownership) and asked ‘What does this place need?’” Devitt said. “They’ve got tacos, Annette in fine dining, (Boychik) in the middle category, a sports bar, biscuits. And they said ‘After Mondo Market left, we’ve been lacking a European market feel.’”
This will be the second opening of the year for Devitt, who also debuted The Barn on South Broadway in Englewood this spring. Troup is not involved in that project, and Devitt said that things are finally ramping up there after an initial slow period.
“In general, this is not the best time to keep opening restaurants,” Devitt said. “But I like to hit the gas while other people are hitting the brakes.”
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