Chrissy Benoit is on a roll. . . and I don’t mean between two slices of bread.
The chef-owner of Lake Worth’s Havana Hideout, who made her culinary bones in the empire of megachef Wolfgang Puck, recently launched her second Production Kitchen in West Palm Beach and is now in the midst of opening a new restaurant in Boynton Beach. To focus her energies on the twin PKs and her soon-to-debut The Little House, she’s sold the Hideout, made famous in 2009 by Guy Fieri’s Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, to a pair of employees and their business partner.
Let’s take these one by one.
Hideout fans needn’t fear, under its new owners, the Hideout will remain the Hideout, only more so. Look for an expanded menu (some of which to still be executed at one of Benoit’s Production Kitchens), nightly live music and longer hours. “I felt a certain sense of responsibility” to retain the Hideout’s artsy-funky sensibilities despite the sale, Benoit says. “I didn’t want it to turn into another burger joint.”
As for The Little House, it’s the 1940s-vintage Ruth Jones Cottage, transported from its original location to a spot on East Ocean Avenue one block west of South Federal Highway as part of the city’s effort to spur business development and create something of a real downtown.
Benoit says her renovations to the cottage, expected to open in February, will “keep that Forties’ vibe,” enhancing such attributes as a large coral rock fireplace, Dade County pine beams and newly opened ceiling. “I want to go back to that old bar-restaurant concept,” she says. “A real neighborhood place, not where you just eat, get your bill and go home.”
As for the food, it will be “fun and all over the place,” with dishes ranging from $6 to $10 and a roster of two-dozen craft beers (and eventually perhaps brewing her own). Among the ideas Benoit is tossing around: chipotle Caesar salad with melted cheese croutons, grilled artichoke hummus and chicken done osso buco style.
Oh, and there’s sure to be something you can get on a roll.
