This Is What The Merchant Could Look Like

A new restaurant plans to open downtown next month — The Merchant, an "American brasserie." There are some solid names attached to the project: co-owner Shane Smyth is also co-owner of Sycamore, a Newton restaurant that has been racking up solid reviews all year, and executive chef Matt Foley was sous chef at Craigie on Main. Zagat reports that Foley tapped a fellow Craigie alum, Tim McQuinn, to be his sous chef.

According to the restaurant's website, diners can expect a 200-seat space with a 40-foot bar serving craft cocktails, a "creative" wine list, and 36 beers on tap. (It appears that the liquor license came from the shuttered Pigalle, reports Boston Restaurant Talk.) There will also be a raw bar. Lunch, dinner, and late-night menus will be available, and Foley told Zagat that there will eventually be brunch as well, and there will be two 30-seat private rooms for meetings and events. The space was formerly a location of the London Harness store, a luggage retailer with roots going back to 1776, when apparently Ben Franklin was a customer.
· The Merchant to open in downtown Boston [BRT]
· More on The Merchant, opening with Craigie alum [Zagat]
· All coverage of The Merchant on Eater [~EBOS~]