Chef Brendon Edwards and Bartender Joe Rob Reveal Alley Bar & Restaurant Concepts

The Detroit Free Press has the first word on the anticipated and extremely secreted new projects by chef Brendon Edwards and bartender Joe Robinson. The pair, alongside partners David Goldman and developer/gallery owner Anthony Curis, plan to open an outdoor bar called the Skip and a cocktail bar and restaurant, Standby, in the alley beside the Z Parking garage in downtown Detroit. The two concepts are part of a larger plan for the area. Curis says the strip will eventually feature more restaurants and bars, shops, and other venues.

Standby will be located in the space where Guns + Butter was expected to open (chef Craig Leickfelt has been mum on the future of the project for some time). Diners will enter the restaurant through an antique elevator to find benches wrapped around the front, seats for 50 in the center, and a "cozy" bar in back. Edward's "progressive American bar food" will play off Robinson's extensive cocktail menu (approximately 50 original and classic drinks will make the list).

The Skip will be located in an unusual open space, formerly home to dumpsters and parking, and will feature beer as well as frozen cocktails like daiquiris and pina coladas. Eventually, the bar may welcome a food truck or walk-up counter.

Edwards and Robinson have been covertly testing their menus around town for the past several months and apparently fed Sir Richard Branson on his recent visit to the city. Both locations are slated to open September 1. Stay tuned for more details. [Freep]