Startup Spotlight: Black Rock Social House becomes Bridgeport’s newest restaurant
The Covid-19 pandemic has done great damage to the restaurant industry ”” a December survey published by the National Restaurant Association that found 17% of U.S. restaurants ”” approximately 110,000 businesses ”” went out of business during the pandemic, and the majority of the closed establishments were, on average, in operation for 16 years.
However, restaurant industry veteran Mark Turocy believed this is the right time to open a new restaurant. On March 15, he will premiere Black Rock Social House, the newest restaurant in the Black Rock section of Bridgeport.
“I”™ve wanted my own restaurant for a while,” said Turocy. “I”™ve been in the industry almost 30 years and as a general manager for over 10. It meant a lot to me, especially this past year due to Covid, that nobody has been able to dine out and socialize appropriately. And everyone”™s been clamoring to have something new and different.”
Turocy”™s restaurant takes over the 2895 Fairfield Ave. space previously occupied for seven years by Walrus + Carpenter, which shuttered in March 2020 shortly after the pandemic began to spread. He noted that many restaurants were unable to quickly realign their business models away from the 100% capacity framework, adding that he is coming with the advantage of planning to run his operations on a smaller-scale capacity model and then be able to grow it as the pandemic begins to abate with the mass rollout of vaccines.
In view of the pandemic, the Black Rock Social House will have dividers in place between the socially distanced tables. Anyone coming in for a meal will need to use one of the hand sanitizing stations set up by the front door.
“I could run under the new business model of Covid and start off with a smaller team and hone in on the hospitality aspect of things,” Turocy said. “I don”™t want anything pretentious or overbearing. It”™s about just being there for your guests.”
In addition to meeting health safety standards, Turocy”™s greatest focus was gathering a staff that met his standards of excellence.
“I meticulously spent a lot of time searching for a team that has an appreciation of what hospitality is here for,” he said. “We just started training for them and they”™re just eating it up.”
Turocy also recruited Jacob Raitt II as his executive chef. Raitt has been a familiar figure in the kitchens of several popular Fairfield County restaurants ”” including The Chelsea in Fairfield, Cask Republic in Stamford and Mezon Tapas Bar & Restaurant in Danbury ”” and his concept for the new menu is what Turocy dubbed “international comfort food.”
“No culture or cuisine is off limits,” he said. “We have representation from pretty much every continent on the planet and we”™re going to be rotating up this menu regularly and putting new stuff in.”
One thing that is off limits are meals, including gluten. Turocy stressed the menu will be 100% gluten-free, and he based the decision on experiences with restaurant customers who found their selections severally limited due to gluten allergies.
“I think it”™s going to be a game-changer,” he said, noting that few restaurants can claim to have thoroughly exiled gluten. “As more and more people understand what gluten does to your body and how it affects people, that it”™s going to be more popular. I think we”™re ahead of that bubble right now.”
The Black Rock community is not lacking in restaurants, but Turocy did not see his fellow restaurateurs as rivals ”” in fact, several enabled his staff to use their kitchens while Black Rock Social House was being built.
“I hate the word ”˜competition,”™” he said. “Especially now, with the damage that”™s been done with this industry. We”™re all a family and we”™re all in this together. We might be trying to vie for a same guest or a customer that walks through the door, but there”™s an appreciation and there”™s a respect factor.”