The French restaurant to open in Cambridge’s Gaslight District
Popular Hamilton bistro the second Steeltown eatery to expand to Galt in the past year
Jason Cassis is glad to be home.
The restaurateur grew up in West Galt before bolting from Southwood Secondary School as a teenager to head to California.
Now, he, and business partner Jerrett Young, are back and ready to set up shop in Cambridge’s Gaslight District.
The duo, who run Equal Parts Hospitality out of Hamilton, are opening a second location of their popular Steeltown bistro The French in the space formerly occupied by the Bellflower Market.
“We’re incredibly excited to open in a building that has similar bones to our Hamilton location,” said Cassis. “It’s a similar context here with a heritage neighbourhood, which is great.”
The French is expected to open in July and will feature about half the dishes from its original location, such as steak and frites, trout almondine and gnocchi, among other things.
“What’s really important is that the team here creates its own version of The French for this neighbourhood, which will be different than Hamilton,” said Cassis, who lives in the Steel City.
“This may lean more bistro than fine dining. The great thing about French food is that you can take it up and down.”
HIP Developments president Scott Higgins, whose company owns and operates the Gaslight District, is a fan of Cassis and Young, who have several restaurants under their umbrella at Equal Parts Hospitality.
Higgins was hoping to get the duo into the Gaslight District for last summer’s launch, but the timing wasn’t right, until now.
“The opportunity to bring those two as operators and The French bistro aspect to town was too good of a thing to pass up,” said Higgins. “There is no French restaurant in all of Waterloo Region. We’re pumped. We just think it’s awesome.” The French will serve lunch and dinner daily in high season, and brunch on weekends. It will also have a café component that serves coffee and snacks in the morning to mid-afternoon.
It’s the second Hamilton-based restaurant to target Galt in the past year, joining the taco and cocktail smash hit The Mule at the corner of Main and Ainslie streets downtown.
“I think the region is underserviced by what I would call independent restaurants,” said Cassis, who figures to add about 30 jobs at The French.
“I think it has a good proportion of chain restaurants, but I think it could use a few more independents. It’s very European and there are lots of great nooks and crannies in Cambridge, particularly in old Galt.”
Cambridge downtown BIA executive director Brian Kennedy credits passionate owners and developers in making Galt a landing spot.
“The arrival of The French restaurant, following in the footsteps of The Mule, reflects the growing appeal of our downtown as a culinary destination,” Kennedy said. “It’s incredibly exciting to see businesses from neighbouring areas, like Hamilton, recognizing the potential of historic Galt, downtown Cambridge, and choosing to invest here.”
Higgins added that he hopes to find another spot in the Gaslight District for a market like the Bellflower.
Meanwhile, chef/owner Giuliano Motola from Taranto, Italy is planning to serve pizza in the Gaslight’s plaza this summer, from his Pizzeria Motola, while aiming for inhouse dining by Labour Day.