To make sure guests didn’t have to wait for a table at San Pedro Cafe, owner Pete Foster implemented a no-wait app that allowed customers to add their name to a list without having to come into the restaurant ahead of time. A side benefit: It also provided analytics that showed that many customers who signed up for a table ended up dining elsewhere because of long wait times. Pedro’s del Este hopes to solve that problem.
Following the success of San Pedro Cafe throughout the past 17 years, Foster has opened Pedro’s del Este as a small plates and cocktail lounge, located in a building right next door to the café. The restaurant serves a unique combination of Spanish, Latin and Cuban cuisine, with specialty cocktails. The sharable meals are inspired by Foster’s travels, as well as by other restaurants around the country. He noticed a growing demand for sharable small-plate meals. Pedro’s del Este hopes to attract locals looking for a late-night spot or a drink while waiting for their table at San Pedro Cafe.
“It isn’t like any other spot in town, or the St. Croix Valley, for that matter,” Foster says. “There aren’t many late-night spots open after 11. Our restaurant fills that demand by providing a cozy atmosphere and a cocktail program that’s evolved and high-end.”
Creating the specialty drink menu was a long process for Foster and his team of mixologists, who researched and tested each selection. There’s the spiced passion fruit margarita with montelobos mezcal, ancho reyes, passionfruit syrup and fresh lime. The Cuba Argentina libre is made of high-end rum, Fernet branca, fresh lime and cola syrup. Foster believes quality bartenders are critical for making a high-quality drink—he’s staffed bartenders with experience and a passion for mixology.
The lounge’s food consists of seafood, pork, beef and chicken dishes, along with several vegetarian options. Creative input and preparation of meals was overseen by executive chef Luke Sawtell. Throughout the past year, possible dishes were introduced and tested at San Pedro Cafe on a weekly basis during happy hour to get firsthand feedback from guests. The most well-received items made it to the Pedro’s del Este menu, which includes gambas al ajo (grilled prawns, citrus, charmoula and romesco) and plantanos de canarias fritos (golden-fried plantains and spicy mojo picon dip). To keep ingredients fresh, the menu is planned to change seasonally up to eight times per year. Desserts are made by an in-house pastry chef and range from sweet and savory mango spears to persimmon cream tarts.
The restaurant’s interior décor is colorful and bright, with a warm, intimate atmosphere. Across the ceiling is a 400-square-foot mural and large skylight. The lounge includes hardwood floors, built-in booths and leather chairs surrounded by three long windows looking onto a patio.
At the heart of Pedro’s del Este is a dedicated staff, including director of restaurant operations Susie Halversen, who has worked with Foster throughout his career in restaurants and hospitality. “I couldn’t do any of this without such a great team,” Foster says. “This endeavor was new for all of us, but it’s turning out better than we could have imagined.”
Cocktails
world famous cherry whiskey old-fashionedIngredients:
- 2 cherries, stemmed and pitted
- 2-inch strip of orange peel
- 1 sugar cube or ½ tsp. sugar
- 2 or 3 dashes orange bitters
- 2 oz. cherry-infused bourbon
Put the cherries, orange peel, sugar and bitters in a lowball glass; crush the sugar and cherries with a muddler or spoon. Fill the glass with ice, add the bourbon, and stir until the drink is cold, about 12 times.
“What makes our supper club unique,” Dalles House owner Sonya Fry says, isn’t just the fun bar: “It’s my team. My mother, Windy Fry, is our longtime general manager, giving up a big corporate job to come help her daughter chase a wild dream. My sister, Sarah, as the whole world knows, gives her heart to every customer, and my husband Phil does everything from dishes to dining host. Our bartenders are like sisters to the locals, and our servers become family to our guests. Our lead bartenders Getta and Allison have been with us the entire 11 years.” That’s the secret, she says: Team and family are most important at the St. Croix Falls supper club.
The Drink: World famous Cherry Whiskey Old-fashioned
The Bar: The Dalles House
The Tenders: Getta Lendosky and Allison Lannert
