Celebrated Canadian chef Sean MacDonald is about to unveil his second restaurant in Santa Monica, right next door to the very first one he opened, in April of last year. Called Burgette, it’s a Parisian-inspired eatery that will offer burgers and small dishes, each with a very subtle French twist.
Set to open sometime in February, it’s located at 111 Santa Monica Blvd, immediately adjacent to Bar Monette, his Spanish and Italian themed restaurant. MacDonald says it was too good of an opportunity to pass up on.
Nestled in-between Tumbi Craft and the BOA Steakhouse in the bustling epicenter of the city’s Downtown district, both Bar Monette and Burgette are in the heart of Santa Monica’s tourist quarter, just a stone’s throw from the Third Street Promenade and the Pier.
"The opportunity presented itself and I thought, ‘I can take it or somebody else could put something there," he says. "So I thought I’ll push myself and do something with the space. Restaurant concept design is a big thing for me, so I was super keen and excited to just jump at the opportunity."
Like so many instances where restaurant properties change hands, if the industrial-scale catering facilities on site are geared toward a certain type of cuisine, like a professional pizza oven for instance, then it can very often influence the direction for whoever takes over the space. Even with minimal upgrades and replacements, utilizing existing appliances can save a lot of money. And prior to MacDonald taking the lease, the site was the home of Stout Burgers & Beers.
"So, the theme before was like burgers and beer. When I walked around the space, it was a little bit unbalanced. There was a lot of kit and a great big kitchen, lots of storage space and like a hallway to the bathroom," MacDonald laughs. "The space just wasn’t used very effectively. Usually you might have the kitchen taking up 25% of the whole space, but this was like 50%, so I knew I had to work out something that’s manageable, something where we can get people in the door and create a good vibe," he says.
"With all of that kitchen infrastructure already in place, together with a customer base that enjoys burgers, it felt obvious. They [Stout Burgers] shut down without any fanfare and I’ve constantly seen customers trying the door to see if it’s open, so I wanted to keep those customers while attracting new ones too."
This marks only the second venture for MacDonald in the US and outside of his home country of Canada. Originally hailing from Calgary, he was named Canada’s best young chef in 2016 by San Pellegrino. He emphasizes that the French influence will be very subtle as many of the country’s traditional flavors can be rather rich.
"I’ve never been the type to use a lot of butter or salt in food, I prefer to keep it refreshing and light, so it won’t be rich at all … There will be French cheeses and the wine list will almost all be French, with a couple of German wines too. Oh, and Belgian beer. And it will be served in much smaller wine glasses, like the kind of thing you might find in a casual, dimly lit, Parisian side street cafe," says MacDonald.
He says that there will be about five different burgers — including an interesting sounding salmon belly smash-style burger — and a lot of small plates, like salads and other French-inspired dishes, together with some large plates, such as steak and fried cod with ouzo. There will also be a few dessert choices that will probably rotate.
"I want to source everything locally," MacDonald says. "I’m going to use a friend’s bakery nearby to make all the buns, because the kitchen isn’t big enough here."
Burgette is currently on track for a late February opening and there will be around 45 to 50 covers, combining both the indoor space and the outside patio, plus a private room in the back that can be booked separately and also used as an overflow.
