Old Earls, brave new concept Owners of King’s Head and Mitchell Block launch Friskee Pearl with ‘fresh-caught seafood served in the middle of the Prairies’ By: Eva Wasney Posted: 7:00 PM CDT Friday, Apr. 21, 2023

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This article was published 21/04/2023 (869 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

As is maritime tradition, the Friskee Pearl Bar & Eatery was christened with bubbles last week in front of a raucous crowd.

The soft launch of the new Main Street restaurant was marked with prosecco, not Champagne and, sans ship’s bow, the bottle was sabred with a cleaver from the lounge stage. The approximated ceremony was as good a metaphor as any for a business aiming to bring East Coast culture to the landlocked centre of the country. Without the Atlantic Ocean at your doorstep, concessions are mandatory.

The atmosphere of a kitchen party, however, is easy to replicate.

“I don’t even care if anyone’s listening,” owner Chris Graves hollered into a microphone, while wearing a shirt as loud as the partygoers downing complimentary drinks around him. “I don’t want you to be quiet because that’s not what this is. It’s supposed to be loud, it’s supposed to be fun and you’re supposed to have a great time.”

Graves was born in Tantallon, a small Nova Scotia municipality west of Halifax. He left home at 19 years old with dreams of becoming a rock star and landed in Winnipeg, where he’s lived off and on for much of his adult life, mostly by accident.

“I never did become a rock star, so I got into the bar business instead,” the owner of the King’s Head Pub says with a laugh.

When the opportunity arose to open a second establishment inside the iconic former Earls location at the corner of Main Street and York Avenue, Graves upped the ante with an ambitious concept: fresh-caught seafood served in the middle of the Prairies.

“Our lobster is never going to be more than two days out of the water,” he says.

That said, the restaurant is at the mercy of coastal fishing and spawning seasons, as well as a wonky supply chain.

“It can be very, very difficult, for sure,” he concedes. “Sometimes you just have to change things up on the fly.”

Graves’ parents still live in Nova Scotia and his mother has become a de facto product sourcer, helping connect the kitchen with local seafood suppliers. Chef Sean McKay is grateful for the assist.

“Thank God Chris’s family is back on the East Coast,” he says. “Logistically, it’s been tricky… but now that the ball is rolling it’s gonna be really cool because now there’s access to all these new products (in Winnipeg).

“That’s what’s gonna make this restaurant different.”

McKay has also been liaising with Graves’ mom for recipe advice. Her chowder — made with clams, salmon, haddock and shrimp — is one of several family recipes on the menu.

“It’s been a lot of me running around with spoons of chowder for Chris to try,” he says. “He’ll be working in the office doing bookkeeping and I’ll run up and be like, ‘Does this taste like home?’”

For McKay, the Friskee Pearl represents some major personal and professional changes.

After many conversations with Graves, the owner-operator of the Mitchell Block — an East Exchange District eatery popular for its handmade pizzas and pastas — decided it was time for a seafaring adventure. He closed the Mitchell Block in January and ferried most of his staff and kitchen equipment to their new home five blocks south.

“I had been the owner of my own restaurant for 10 years; it was bittersweet leaving there,” says McKay, who also moved out of the suite he had been living in above the restaurant. “But I’m super excited — it’s a brand new chapter.”

It’s taken months of construction to prepare the Friskee Pearl for opening. While the bones of the restaurant were good, Graves says the project was a near gut job. New kitchen equipment was brought in and the front-of-house received substantial facelifts.

The layout of the space hasn’t changed much. To the right of the entrance is the Emerald Room, a large dining room with green walls and plush banquettes. To the left is the Ruby Room, a red-walled lounge with a large end-to-end bar, a pool table and a small stage, where live music is planned for weekends.

Both areas feature rooms that can be booked for private parties.

There’s vaguely nautical decor — a lighthouse print, old barrels and a wooden ship’s wheel — throughout the restaurant.

On stage during the soft open, Graves spoke about feeling emotional.

“I definitely have nerves because it’s such a big place and a huge undertaking,” he says.

Graves has been upfront about the financial challenges he’s faced as a business owner amid the pandemic. Like many restaurateurs, he took on a mountain of debt to keep the King’s Head open and received more than $45,000 in donations from a GoFundMe campaign when it seemed like the doors were bound to close in 2021. Running another very large venue is not without risks.

“But I’m excited,” he adds. “I also have a sense of pride, I’m just very proud of the team that I’m surrounded by.”

On Tuesday, the crowd of fellow business owners, politicos, local personalities and friends seemed equally excited for the new venture. Mayor Scott Gillingham joined Graves on stage to share a few words about the importance of new businesses, like the Friskee Pearl, opening in downtown Winnipeg.

“A lot of people at city hall, especially a lot of my colleagues, refer to the King’s Head as the south office,” Gillingham shouted over the din. “So this will be the south, south office.”

eva.wasney@winnipegfreepress.com

Twitter: @evawasney

Eva Wasney
Reporter

Eva Wasney has been a reporter with the Free Press Arts & Life department since 2019. Read more about Eva.

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