C’est Magnifique!

1592 Wood Fired Kitchen & Cocktails

Mila Aguiar and Edward Zaki are #couplegoals, #careergoals, #squadgoals… they’re the embodiment of all the #goals. Mila and Eddie are co-owners of 1592 Wood Fired Kitchen & Cocktails, located on the corner of Main Street and Orange Avenue in downtown Sarasota. The rest of this stellar leadership team includes Eddie’s longtime friend, collaborator, and business partner Executive Chef Alexandre Gosselin, and Eddie’s younger brother Chef de Cuisine Johnny Zaki.

Chef Alex and Eddie are also partners in a restaurant in their home city of Montreal called Chez Victoire, which highlights eclectic seasonal tasting menus and features a vibrant bar. 1592 is a more casual concept but the vibrant bar is on brand and the restaurant’s menu is certainly eclectic—how often do you find a killer poutine, a knockout ceviche, and a kickass moussaka on the same menu?

The poutine is, of course, an affectionate nod to their shared history: a quintessential Quebec comfort food of french fries and cheese curds topped with brown gravy. If you have never tried poutine, I recommend that you try 1592’s version first. Treat it like a plate of nachos: Order one for the table. If you’re feeling a little rough after a fun night out, keep the whole bowl to yourself. The french fries are crispy, the cheese curds are salty, the gravy is rich and meaty.

Mila and Eddie spend most of their time at 1592 and they invited me to visit before service one day right before the end of the year. Mila sits with me while Eddie busies himself behind the bar and their easy banter is both entertaining and inclusive. When I ask about their favorite dishes Mila immediately predicts that Eddie will choose the burger. She’s not wrong. Mila’s favorite is either wood fire grilled whole branzino with fattoush salad and rapini or the Sliders Two Ways, depending on her mood.

Eddie is passionate about the burger and fries. He is sure that 1592 has one of the great burgers in Sarasota. The patty is eight ounces of 80/20 ground beef, simply seasoned with Montreal Steak Spice, naturellement, and infused with the unmistakable flavor of the wood-fired grill. This begs the question: Which other menu items are grilled on the wood fire? The seafood, most of the fish, the chicken, and the lamb chops. Eddie makes a point about this: “Lamb chops should ONLY be cooked on a wood fire. The fat is charred and renders perfectly.”

The dish that all three of us agree that we can’t get enough of is from the appetizer menu: Saganaki Flambé. Saganaki is a traditional Greek dish of pan-seared cheese. At 1592 the saganaki is flambéed in ouzo with fennel and served with pita bread. C’est magnifique!

Most of the staff at 1592 have been there for a long time. The hiring process is slow and deliberate. Mila says that Eddie is great judge of character. “We’re essentially hiring people to be members of this small family that we have created. It’s important to find the right fit.” This philosophy can be extended to the wine list. “We like a variety, smaller vineyards, inclined more to Old World, but we still get what people will appreciate. We are more established now so people trust us more than they may have in the beginning.” Now they can push the envelope and get slightly more obscure, special wines—like a rosé from a volcanic island or a delicate orange wine.

Mila and Eddie have embraced their competitors too and are quick to heap praise on their fellow restaurateurs. They love Meliora, Indigenous, Ama la Vita, Sage, State Street, Made, and Epicure. “We get out late, so we often end up at Origins or Tamiami Tap.”

Do they cook at home? Yes, says Eddie. “We love to cook at home. Whenever we get the chance. We have been known to light the wood fire in the Egg at 10:30 at night. Mila’s steak must be cooked on a wood fire. The neighbor asked if our garage was on fire one night.”

It’s a testament to the dedication of the team behind 1592 that this restaurant has gone from strength to strength and is now considered one of the best in downtown Sarasota. They have gone through a forced name change, dealt with massive initial resistance (they transformed a space formerly held for many years by a popular old-school Greek restaurant), and made it through the depths of a pandemic. People have come to appreciate that 1592 is not a cut-and-paste experience. They are taking a fresh approach and interpreting things in their own way.

Who benefits from the love and charm and expertise that imbue every aspect of 1592 Wood Fired Kitchen & Cocktails? We do, of course. #blessed.

1592 Wood Fired Kitchen & Cocktails: 1592 Main St, Sarasota; 941-365-2234; 1592srq.com