TRANSITIONS

Elizabeth McMullen, chef-owner of E's Bistro, in the Lakehill Shopping Center, 3812 John F. Kennedy Blvd., North Little Rock, confirms the restaurant closed on or about New Year's Day, but that she is negotiating with at least one candidate, whom she prefers not to name until a contract is signed, for the restaurant's potential reopening. McMullen says she expects, as part of whatever deal gets struck, that she'll stay on as pastry chef, which is where she got her culinary start (her desserts have been widely praised here and in her former restaurant, Elizabeth's on Crestwood).

Co-owner Jim Miners says negotiations are continuing on a planned second location and reintroduction to Hillcrest of EJ's Eats & Drinks in a new strip center at 3604 Kavanaugh Blvd., Little Rock, at North Lookout. (Fans and foodies will remember that the restaurant originated in a Kavanaugh hole-in-the-wall in a building that has since been torn down and replaced by a bank.) The building owners, he says, have postponed a decision until at least April, pending any resolution of continuing issues of parking and traffic at that busy intersection.

Co-owners Christina Basham and Sonia Schaefer are on the cusp of opening Boulevard Bistro and Bar, conjoined with the original Heights location of Boulevard Bread Co., 1920 N. Grant St., Little Rock, completing the expansion into the former next-door New Traditions storefront. Basham says they're "really close," about a week out from offering lunch and "another couple of weeks out for dinner." The new space will allow Boulevard to offer a full dinner menu with table service and a full lineup of craft beers and cocktails. Tentative hours: 7 a.m.-10 p.m. Monday-Wednesday, 7 a.m.-11 p.m. Thursday-Saturday, 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Sunday. The new phone number for the bistro and bar is (501) 663-5949; the number for the original side of the business, which will continue to operate as a small gourmet market, remains (501) 663-5951.

Nancy Ward reopened her Sassy Cake Lady bakery and catering operation Wednesday morning at 13120 Crystal Hill Road, North Little Rock, just on the edge of Maumelle, where her strip center neighbors include a Shipley's Donuts. The phone number is (501) 615-8486; visit the Facebook page, facebook.com/sassycakelady.

When he told us the deal had at least temporarily fallen through, we refrained from reporting when it came up a couple of months ago that Bruno Beqiri, of at least a dozen central Arkansas Italian and Mediterranean restaurants (among the most recent: Bruno's Italian Bistro on Bowman Road in Little Rock) would be leasing the defunct Ed and Kay's, 15228 Interstate 30, Benton. Beqiri continues to contend that there's no firm lease deal in place, but he's been running want-ads in this paper with his personal number seeking "servers, kitchen help, hostess and bussers, with experience" to call or apply in person at the restaurant.

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One of our Hot Springs area sharp-eyed observers reports that pharmacist and restaurateur Russ Jefferson, the owner of the former Hot Springs Oyster Bar and Little Rock's much-loved S.O.B., is on track to finally open the long-delayed Frenchies at 2012 Central Ave., Hot Springs, formerly the location of Pompeii, which closed in 2010. Among the evidence: a front-door sign reporting an application for a beer and wine permit. Jefferson put the development of the restaurant on hold during the long illness and subsequent death of a son last year. We're hearing, second-hand, that his target to open is mid-February. Jefferson told us some months ago that the menu would feature "French Quarter favorites from New Orleans," including a Saturday-Sunday morning breakfast that features beignets and cafe au lait, a la the Big Easy's Cafe Du Monde, using "the exact same coffee that they use." And he plans to stand by the motto he established at previous establishments: "Fresh seafood at a sailor's price" -- various combinations of shrimp, oysters, stuffed crab and catfish, plus a couple of varieties of etouffee. We got no answer at the restaurant's listed phone number, (501) 321-2337, yet.

While we're in the Spa City, another sharp-eyed observer has spotted a sign at 3371 Central Ave., the former location of Nom Noms Mexican Grill N Chill, announcing the approach of a second Debra's Restaurant, which, we're told, could open any day -- as soon as all the licenses and permits are in place. We couldn't get an answer at the listed phone number, (501) 627-3327, but we got our information from the nice woman who answered the phone number -- (501) 623-6377 -- at the original Debra's, 4510 Park Ave. You'll recall we reported late last year that Nom Nom's co-owner, Rafael Alvarez, was hoping to have found a new location in the city by the advent of racing season, which heats up the restaurant business, and which is now upon us. Meanwhile, the restaurant phone number, (501) 623-8588, remains connected to a voice-mail box.

Still in the Spa City, the Sentinel Record reports a certificate of occupancy has been filed for Cafe 135 to become the latest restaurant at the Springs Hotel & Spa, 135 Central Ave. Most recently the address housed a Mexican place called Loca Marujas.

And one more Hot Springs item: Roland's BBQ, 200 Higdon Ferry Road right where that street branches off Central Avenue by the Oaklawn racetrack, has closed and its phone number, (501) 625-3079, has been disconnected.

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And Pulaski Technical College's Culinary Arts and Hospitality Management Institute, Interstate 30, Little Rock, will host the Court of Master Sommelier's "Introductory to Sommelier" course, 8 a.m.-5 p.m. March 23-24. The Level I course, the first of four required steps to become a Master Sommelier, culminates on the second day with the Introductory Sommelier Exam. The course is open to all beverage and hospitality professionals "interested in pursuing the highest standards of wine service and product knowledge in a fine dining room setting." Among the local certified sommeliers organizing the course: Jimmy Hamilton of Colonial Wines and Spirits, Lee Edwards of Yellow Rocket Concepts, Johnathan Looney of O'Looney's Wines & Spirits and Chris Calvert of Moon Distributing. Cost is $525. Details and registration information is available at tinyurl.com/qdgrt7g.

Has a restaurant opened -- or closed -- near you in the last week or so? Does your favorite eatery have a new menu? Is there a new chef in charge? Drop us a line. Call (501) 399-3667 or (501) 378-3513, or send a note to Restaurants, Weekend Section, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, P.O. Box 2221, Little Rock, Ark. 72203. Send email to:

eharrison@arkansasonline.com

Weekend on 01/15/2015

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