Visit Angry Urchin, leave happy
Upscale restaurant showcases local ingredients
A decade ago, the notion of establishing an upscale dining establishment beyond city limits might have been considered a risky and somewhat foolhardy venture in Newfoundland and
Labrador. But as evidenced by the success of such operations in the Bonavista area and a host of other small locales around the province, it’s a model that has the potential to work. The latest is the Angry Urchin, located on the doorstep to the Bell Island ferry crossing in Portugal Cove-St. Phillip’s, N.L.
“When we were getting into the restaurant business, we were looking at something downtown (in St. John’s), but being our first time I didn’t want to get in over our heads. The high rent and the turnover rate downtown is really scary,” says Paul Alexander, who co-owns the kitchen-and-bar-style restaurant with his fiancée, Cindy Hann.
The duo is banking on the patronage of locals and people in neighbouring communities. The success of the Grounds Café at Murray’s Garden Centre just up the road provided added confidence.
“We saw the clientele there and ran some demographics, so we knew the people were here, especially up towards Flatrock and Pouch Cove; there’s nothing really in this part of the Avalon outside of St. John’s,” says Alexander.
The establishment was known as Wild Horses Pub and Eatery when Alexander and Hann took ownership last July. It wasn’t until winter that plans for the Angry Urchin began to take shape. The most important component was to ensure the menu and esthetic fell in line with Alexander and Hann’s passion for local ingredients.
“That’s what most customers want when they go to restaurants,” Alexander says. “They want to know where their food is coming from, they want it local, they want it fresh, not frozen, they want to know exactly what’s on their plate.” Alexander says 70 per cent of the menu comes from the Conception Bay area. Beef and pork is sourced from Taylor’s Meats in Conception Bay South, produce is from Coates Farm and Murray’s Greenhouse, Hann’s father provides much of the seafood and professional forager Shawn Dawson of The Barking Kettle provides edible products plucked from area woods and shorelines. The commitment to local is so fierce that rather than using lemons and limes from the grocery store to meet their citrus needs, they’re using Newfoundland Beer Vinegar from Wild Mother Provisions and hybrid herbs like orange thyme and lemon balm.
The local focus also extends to the bar menu, where taps will pour beer from Newfoundland craft breweries and a cocktail menu with Newfoundland-inspired beverages like Mummer’s Last Dance and The Sally Brown, all of them using ingredients foraged by Dawson. Other Newfoundland operations providing products include Five Brothers Cheese, the Newfoundland Salt Company, the Newfoundland Distillery Company, and Third Place Cocktail Company. Even the tables and chairs are local, fabricated by Out of the Woodworks NL’s Josh Strong.
“A community feel, that’s what the main goal is,” Alexander says of their dedication to local first. “If one of us does better, we all do better, so let’s help each other out.” Rather than employing the traditional appetizer-entrée-dessert menu, The Angry Urchin has adopted the shared plates style that is becoming increasingly popular. “Nowadays, people don’t want to have just one thing, they want to try a bunch of things, they want to try the entire menu.”
They want to know where their food is coming from, they want it local, they want it fresh, not frozen, they want to know exactly what’s on their plate. Paul Alexander