Neighborhood bistro brings guests together

Upon walking into NOSH Euro Bistro in southwest Plano, there are a few things that might catch one's eye before they are even presented with a menu.

Between the communal dining table, the private wine room with seating for 20 and the open kitchen, it might be hard to pinpoint exactly what kind of restaurant NOSH is. But don't let the crispy duck confit fool you -- owner Jon Stevens says this restaurant is not meant to be seen as a fancy restaurant that's high on décor and low on flavor.

"We wanted this to be a place where people feel like they can come to lunch here a couple of times a week or dinner a couple of times a week and feel like they didn't get racked across the coals," Stevens said. "We feel like our portions are right for the price, too. It's not too much, but obviously not too little."

NOSH opened a month ago and is the local equivalent to its flagship location in Dallas' Oak Lawn neighborhood. While its open, European-style kitchen certainly is the focal point of the restaurant, its menu is equally as alluring. While the static menu consists of unique and more seasonal items (Yukon potato latkes, grilled native quail), the chalk board is the culinary trademark at NOSH. With as many as 10 featured items, Stevens makes sure it periodically changes and introduces new flavors and combinations, each one varying significantly from the other.

"We are evolving food and coming up with new combinations of different things. Its's a venue for the chef at each location to create," Stevens said. "What kind of stands out for us is the focus on the kitchen and the chef-driven food. You can tell by the menu and when it hits the table, it's well thought out."

The combination of Steven's 20 years as a chef and partner Avner Samuel's 35 years of hotel experience makes for a professional operation that is focused on "chef-driven" cuisine, but at an affordable price.

"There's quite a bit of chef experience there and we've all cooked at high level and medium level, so we understand what it takes to be successful," Stevens said. "But we also understand the evolving markets and we're in kind of a low spending market now and we're picking up more value for the same price."

Stevens opened Aurora in Oak Lawn with Samuel in 2002. The two decided to close the ultra high-end restaurant several years later and conceptualized it into NOSH, which was opened in September 2010. By incorporating creative money-saving practices, Stevens said, they were able to still provide the same level of cooking and techniques they shared a passion for. Plans for a restaurant in Austin are also in the works and is set to open in August.

"Maybe it's using a little less expensive ingredients but still high quality," Stevens said. "Instead of lobster and caviar all time maybe it's some farm raised chicken or free-range chicken, a more approachable product. We don't want to be considered fine dining; we want to be looked at as a neighborhood bistro."

The open kitchen also works to improve employee relations by encouraging cooperation between the wait staff and the chefs, something many restaurants struggle to achieve. By dissolving the barriers between the "back of the house" and the "front of the house," it makes room for better cohesion no matter what their role may be, he said. And if the staff is happy, everyone is happy, including the customers, he said.

"We are creating guest involvement," Stevens said. "On a busy night it's full all the way around and the people are just glued. It's a little challenging sometimes because people want to talk to you, [but] that's part of engaging with the guests and that's what we're doing. We're creating an experience."

While the open kitchen and the interactive menu certainly contribute to the atmosphere, NOSH General Manager Matt Bayat said the communal dining table has become a source of energy and exuberance by bringing strangers together who share one thing in common: the love of food.

"On a busy night the energy is amazing. This is different for Plano, the communal table," Bayat said. "It's becoming a favorite for a lot more people now because it's a good view of the kitchen but at first they weren't so sure. All cultures of the planet come together over food, no doubt about it. And friendships get started at the communal table."

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