Tag: SOB

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Food & Drink Hungry Memphis

South of Beale Looks to the East

CREDIT: Murray Lace/Obsidian

If you’re tired of driving Downtown to get your hands on some of SOB’s delicious duck fried rice or General Tso’s cauliflower, owner Ed Cabigao has been listening. A second location called SOBeast is set to open its doors to the public next Tuesday, September 8th, in the former Interim space at 5040 Sanderlin Ave.

Murray Lace/Obsidian

SOB owner Ed Cabigao at the new East Memphis location.

Cabigao has had his eye on expanding the SOB brand for a while. When the pandemic offered him a chance to experiment with using Interim as a ghost kitchen for SOB’s menu, the demand was too high to ignore. “We were getting a lot of requests form East Memphians to have SOB to-go food closer to them,” he says. “We did much better than we thought, and after a couple of weeks, our to-go orders out there surpassed those at our Downtown location.

“We think the fine dining model post-COVID will be really challenging,” he explains. “Interim had a lot of challenges even before the pandemic hit, so we thought it was best to rebrand the space to SOBeast.”

The pandemic also forced Cabigao into a tough decision with his other establishment, Zaka Bowl. “It was sad since were passionate about it, and had a lot of loyal customers, but the pandemic really cut off its profitability.”

Now, Cabigao is firmly focused on expanding the SOB brand. “Since we’re focusing on just one brand, we can elevate SOB to where we want it to be. It’s in our mind to add a third location, but we don’t have concrete plans just yet.”

Murray Lace/Obsidian

SOB’s duck fried rice, complete with egg on top, is one of the restaurant’s most popular items.

Anthony Fenech will lead the kitchen at the East Memphis location, before transitioning into a corporate chef type of role overseeing both SOB locations. Meanwhile, Jess Hewlette joined the team several months ago to take over the Downtown location. “She joined us from the Liquor Store, and she’s got a really good flavor palette and some excellent ideas we want to highlight over the next couple of months,” says Cabigao.

The 3,500-square-foot SOBeast will feel like a “restaurant with a really good cocktail and bar program,” says Cabigao. When the original SOB moves into the Ambassador Hotel space, the two locations will parallel each other in terms of atmosphere, aesthetics, and menu. However, expect some slight variations down the line. “Eventually, we’ll have a menu sections that will say either ‘East Exclusives’ or ‘Downtown Exclusives,’” he says. “They’ll highlight our individual chefs’ styles that we have at both locations.”

With the pandemic in mind, Cabigao plans to utilize emerging technologies in the restaurant sector at the East Memphis location. While many restaurants have provided QR codes for menu access, he plans to extend that to receipts so customers can pay the bill on their phones. He also plans to make SOB’s website more robust, with an online system that sends orders straight to the kitchen for a smoother process.

SOBeast opens Tuesday, September 8th, for dine-in, curbside pickup, and UberEats delivery from 11 a.m. – 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and for all-day brunch 11 a.m. – 9 p.m. on Sunday. 5040 Sanderlin. 901-818-0821. southofbeale.com

Categories
Food & Drink Hungry Memphis

S.O.B. Will Open its Dining Room June 15th



South of Beale a.k.a. S.O.B. will open its dining room June 15th. 

“We’ve been open for delivery and takeout ever since this whole thing happened, and both have been doing really, really well,” says owner Ed Cabigao. “It took us a few weeks to decide how to open back up fully and make sure we’re following all the guidelines — and how that affects our operations and how we serve people. That’s why we took the past month to sit back and figure everything out, operations-wise, on our end.”

The most popular S.O.B. takeout/delivery items were duck fried rice, General Tso’s cauliflower, and “probably our grilled salmon with Brussels sprouts,” Cabigao says.

S.O.B.’s capacity will be 50 percent until Phase III begins. Tables will be six feet apart. Employees will wear masks, and hand sanitizers will be available. The restaurant will use paper menus, as well as feature a QR code on each table so customers can see the menu on their phones.

The restaurant will be open from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily. Brunch will be served until 3 p.m. on Sundays.

S.O.B. had planned to move next door to the old Ambassador Hotel at 345 South Main, “right across our parking lot,” but plans have changed a bit, Cabigao says. 

Michael Donahue

Ed Cabigao last year in the old Ambassador Hotel

“We were looking to open in August, but ever since all this happened, our permit got delayed for a month. So, we’re looking to opening — hopefully — in early October.

The new S.O.B. will have 5,000 square feet and three private dining rooms. Cabigao believes private dining rooms “will be even more in demand with this whole COVID thing, and people want to have their own private room with family and friends. We’re thinking when we open up in October we’ll be able to generate more revenue that way as well.”

P/K/M Architects

Rendering of the proposed new South of Beale

As for the current S.O.B. location, Cabigao says, “We own that building, so we plan on renting it out to another restaurant concept that complements the neighborhood.”

S.O.B. is at 361 South Main Street; (901) 526 0388

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Food & Wine Food & Drink

S.O.B. Is Moving

South of Beale, Memphis’ first gastropub, has always held food as its focus. That’s why Ed and Brittany Cabigao — owners of S.O.B., Interim, and Zaka Bowl — have decided to move S.O.B. into a larger space with a much larger kitchen, something their new head chef, Daniel Gamboa, is thrilled about.

“The main reason is that we do need more space,” owner Ed Cabigao says. “We designed this kitchen to do half the business it’s doing now. So basically, the kitchen is really overcrowded, overloaded … I want my employees to have a better space to work in.”

The new venue, located on the first floor of the old Ambassador building, will open in spring 2020 at 345 S. Main.

The dining room will add about five more tables, the bar will be longer, and the kitchen is expected to be five times its current size. The new location will also feature three private dining rooms that can be transformed into one giant event space for large parties. “We basically decline one event a week, on average, because we just don’t have the space right now,” Cabigao explains.

The owners also seek to maintain the integrity of the original S.O.B., that of a cozy Downtown bar with an adventurous, chef-driven menu: “We want it to feel like S.O.B.,” Cabigao says. “We’re still going to keep it quaint and unpretentious but almost like an S.O.B. 2.0.” In addition to more seating indoors, they will be expanding the patio space as well.

As they prepare for the move, the restaurant is embracing a new head chef: Daniel Gamboa, the bold and talented 22-year-old who blessed the S.O.B. menu with General Tso’s Cauliflower, which has been the highest-selling appetizer on the menu since it dethroned the Duck Fried Rice last year.

Gamboa came to S.O.B. from Interim a year ago to serve as sous chef under Anthony Fenech, and the two did a menu refresh at that time that introduced several unique items, including the cauliflower. The menu redesign led to S.O.B. having its best year yet in 2018.

Ed Cabigao says they’re slated to do even better in 2019, and he describes Gamboa as extremely hard-working, skilled, and full of energy. When asked about stepping up as head chef, Gamboa says, “It’s a little scary, but I think I’m ready for it.”

For those wondering if they’ll introduce new menu items again at the relaunch next spring, it’s a likely possibility.

“If we can push the food further, that’s what we want to do,” Cabigao says. “But we’re going to let our customers gauge that, too. That’s what we did when we first opened, and we’ll do that again.”

But the menu’s staples — like the Duck Patty Melt and the Smoked Gouda Mac & Cheese — aren’t going anywhere.

So what’s to happen with the old S.O.B.? The owners are looking for another restaurant tenant to take over the South Main space. Cabigao explains that they’ve had interest from some other bar concepts and burger places, but they “want whoever comes in here to complement not just the new S.O.B. but also Pontotoc, Slider Inn, Green Beetle — and not just be direct competition.”

The owners will also turn the second and third floors of the Ambassador building into apartments, which may lead to even more foot traffic on the block.

S.O.B. celebrated its 10th anniversary with a lively party on August 10th. The space was filled with familiar faces: bar regulars, restaurant patrons, former and current staff, friends and family — and lots of children.

It was interesting to see how much the place seemed to have grown up in the last decade. But also, the people: Ed and Brittany themselves have had two kids since S.O.B. first opened, and in many ways it’s like they’re growing up alongside the business.

“I tell people all the time: We opened this place up when we were 26 years old,” says Cabigao. “We thought we knew everything, but we didn’t know everything.”

The new South of Beale space, located on the first floor of the old Ambassador building, will open in spring 2020 at 345 S. Main.