Customshop’s Trey Wilson plans new restaurant

Trey Wilson, the chef/owner of Customshop on Elizabeth Avenue, announced Wednesday that he’ll open a new restaurant, Flourshop, in Park Road Shopping Center this fall.

Flourshop will be the latest new food business coming to the “back lot” area of Park Road, near Rocksalt. Several other new projects have been announced or are already under construction, including Conrad Hunter’s speakeasy-style restaurant Dot Dot Dot, a new Amélie’s location and Midwood Smokehouse.

Flourshop will be in the section near the greenway, part of a row of existing buildings, and will include a patio, an open-fire grill and an open-kitchen style.

“The kitchen will be in the dining room, pretty much,” Wilson says. “I want you to feel like you’re in the kitchen.”

The menu will include fresh pasta and bread (hence the Flourshop name), as well as roasted meats on the open grill: “The true definition of roasting,” Wilson says. “True roasting isn’t in an oven.”

He plans for the menu to be family-style, with “price-conscious” prices. He’s aiming for entrees to be less than $20.

Customshop opened with some flash in 2007: Originally, it was a partnership with among others, New York chef David Pasternack of Esca, a winner of the James Beard Award for Best Chef New York known for his focus on fish and seafood. The partnership later dissolved, and Customshop endured months of traffic and construction when the trolley line was extended from uptown up Elizabeth Avenue.

After that, with Wilson at the helm, Customshop evolved into a locally focused menu that often includes produce Wilson grows himself in an extensive home garden. For Flourshop, he plans to even grow the flowers himself. He’s known for sourcing from local fish dealers and farms as well.

Wilson says nothing at Customshop will change. His partner in Flourshop will be his general manager and sommelier, Chip Townsend, and Wilson will divide his time between the two kitchens. He hopes the new restaurant will be open in early fall.

This story was originally published April 12, 2017 at 2:44 PM with the headline "Customshop’s Trey Wilson plans new restaurant."