UPDATED: An Opening Date For Whetstone, And Some Menu Intel

Photo courtesy Yoni Nimrod

UPDATE: Nolen and company are backing off that January 15th date slightly, owing to the vagaries of the restaurant world, and are now saying to look for an opening in “early 2015.”

Whetstone Restaurant, Jeremy Nolen’s casual American bar and restaurant that will take over the former Tapestry space at 5th and Bainbridge, is scheduled to open January 15–one year since the building was purchased for redesign.

This is Nolen’s big departure–a move away from the German food that has made him a name in Philly–but we’re looking forward to seeing what he can do in a non-sausage-based canon.

Here’s what we know right now.

The Whetstone menu will change seasonally, and aim to be an affordable option for Queen Village. The restaurant’s bar will feature dishes such as a 4 oz burger with Cooper sharp cheese, tomato jam, pickle, and red onion on a potato roll called the Backyard Burger; a dry-aged roast beef sandwich, and a BLT featuring a roasted whole slab of bacon, sliced thin with tomato jam and shredded iceberg lettuce slaw. There will also be  an extensive charcuterie and cheese selection, showcased at a display counter at the end of the bar, as well as other snacks and sandwiches.

As for the mains, Nolen is teasing a Philadelphia Pepper Pot Soup, 35 day dry-aged “minute” steak, and Whetstone’s interpretation of the Pennsylvania Dutch Pot Pie. Other dish ideas include a boneless duck with wild mushrooms, a crispy skin-on roast pork with sharp provolone polenta and roasted broccoli rabe (which sounds fantastic for cold weather), and smoked bluefish croquettes.

Whetstone [f8b8z]