The Mercantile Social

New Leaders Bring in Fresh Perspectives

BY LAURA OAKLEY
PHOTOS MICHELLE DOUCETTE

Since February 2023, The Mercantile Social has ushered in a self-proclaimed new era. With a change in leadership and a combination of old and new staff, the 250-seat restaurant on Hollis Street has been working hard to find its footing and bond its team to create a genuine experience in food, drinks and service. Co-general managers Steve MacDonald and Marcus Oliva have been at the helm of the restaurant’s “rebirth,” working with the team closely, not just to forge a new identity for the restaurant but to give their team the space they need to do what they do best.

“Calvin [Kempen] and Liam [Dwyer] were here before us but now have the ability to work on their own menus and show their creative sides and their passion,” says MacDonald of the restaurant’s executive chef and sous chef, respectively. Oliva, an experienced front-of-house manager, worked at this location a few years ago under a different ownership structure. MacDonald, who also has culinary training, brings extensive restaurant management experience to The Mercantile.

Wrangling in a restaurant like The Mercantile Social is no small task. Firstly, it’s massive. The stunning dining room seats 250 people, and the newly launched patio adds another 115 during the warmer months. The interior is gorgeous and eclectic, mixing several high-end design trends with comfy, soft seating. There are plush, round booths, high and low tables, and a long, dominant bar—there are so many different seating arrangements in this restaurant it’s a little overwhelming. Secondly, when it’s full—it’s full on. Three hundred and sixty-five people is a lot to keep watered and fed. The vibe on a busy night at The Mercantile is non-stop cocktail shaking and food running. And the space is agile, easily turning into a late-night destination once dinner service finishes. Thirdly—the food menu is quite extensive.

“With the rebranding of everything, it was a really big opportunity—a little bit of an opportunity and a little bit of a necessity,” says Kempen of developing the new menu. “Not just to rebrand ourselves but to do more of the stuff that we like to do.” He describes much of the 33-item menu as being driven by “cravings items that we wanted to eat.” That quality comes through when you see frites smothered in a four-cheese sauce, baos stuffed with lobster, birria tacos, a fried chicken sandwich, and a double smash burger. But upon closer inspection, there are more sophisticated offerings that accompany these comfort foods. Kempen and Dwyer have spent time in fine dining kitchens, so it’s no surprise to spot items like house-made gnocchi, tuna tartare, house dry-aged beef or Muscovy duck with pomme purée.

“I feel like [the menu] very much captures a lot of the different identities and a lot of the ideas that everybody has here. We’re going through all of our backgrounds in the menu in a way,” says Kempen. “We have such a varied team. And each identity there has a little space on the menu, too. It’s eclectic and creative.” The stories behind some of the dishes begin to put into perspective how and why the menu is so extensive and with such a range of inspirations. “Marisol, our pastry chef, had made birria for her family,” says Kempen. “And she brought it in for the staff, and we all ate it and were like… that’s exactly what we’re looking for in a taco.” And so beef birria tacos went on the appetizer menu. You will see some influence from Kempen’s training and time cooking in Italy. And the diversity of the menu ties back into the brand that The Mercantile is hoping to establish—named after the rich history of Hollis Street, the vibrance of a working port city, where people came from all over the world and where worldly goods and exotic spices landed first in Halifax. It’s a nice thought.

The stylish new patio is just a few weeks into its inaugural season when I sit for lunch on an incredibly bright, sunny, hot day. Taking the table closest to the harbour side allows for a cool breeze. The patio furniture combines soft white couches and modern-looking brown rattan chairs. There are retractable pergolas and plenty of propane heaters to adapt to the unpredictable Halifax summer weather. There are also a few fire tables. You can see the blue water of the harbour peeking out behind the lush trees that line parts of Lower Water Street, or, if you sit facing Hollis Street, there are prime people-watching opportunities. I’m just really enjoying the breeze. (And a cold glass of Loveblock Sauvignon Blanc.)

To start, I get the tuna tartare, a perfect summer dish. The fresh yellowfin tuna tastes light and flavorful, elevated with citrus, topped with an herbed crumb and thinly sliced, tangy radish dimes, delicate sprigs of dill, and served with a paper-thin carraway focaccia cracker. It has three accoutrements: house-made Dijon mustard, creamy caper-dill sauce, and sundried tomato aioli. I smash the cracker with my fork into smaller pieces to use as vessels; the spicy Dijon is my favourite with the succulent tuna.

Luckily hard decisions didn’t need to be made, as my lunch date ordered the birria tacos to start. It's a hefty meal of three tacos stuffed with slow-roasted beef chuck and Oaxaca cheese, topped with onion, cilantro and the consommé on the side (beef broth) for dipping. They are everything birria tacos should be—rich, flavourful meat and cheese in a grilled crispy tortilla—but they’re not too greasy. The consommé is robust and delicious. A definite winner. (Good job, Marisol.)

It’s the perfect day for some seafood on this shiny new patio, and what better to have with it than a glass of chilled Tidal Bay? I order the risotto alla scoglio, a lobster bisque risotto with mascarpone cheese folded in, herbed olive oil drizzle, and topped with seared scallops, mussels and sautéed prawns. Parmesan shavings and sprigs of dill adorn the top of this reddish-orange dish. The risotto is rich with Parmesan cheese, butter, tomato and lobster flavours. It is creamy and indulgent. The seafood on top is perfect—plump, juicy shrimp, flavourful mussels and beautifully rich Digby scallops. And, yes, definitely, this is the ideal match for Tidal Bay.

Excitedly I also get to taste the buttermilk fried chicken sandwich. It features a considerable portion of perfectly crispy fried chicken, creamy dill sauce, chilli-honey butter, crunchy red cabbage slaw and pickles on a toasted soft white bun. It’s a little hard to get your mouth around (it’s tall!), but the flavours are spot-on for delivering dreamy comfort food. And it gives that winning combination of salty, sweet, crunchy, juicy chicken with some heat and acid from the pickles and slaw. The shoe-string frites and ketchup that come with it also hit the spot.

“We felt like each dish needed a character and an identity,” says Kempen of developing this most recent menu. “There were weeks where we came in most days and were testing dishes.” Says Kempen. “It’s a fun, crazy process that in the middle of it, you don’t even notice how much work you’re doing. You’re not even thinking about that. You’re just thinking about mayonnaise or something.” It’s warming to hear how much fun this team is having and how much they appreciate having the reigns to create food they are excited about in an inclusive environment. “I’m deeply in love with this restaurant,” says Dwyer of his stint as sous chef. “It’s been a great growth that I’ve seen in this restaurant over the last two years.”

The time spent has paid off, establishing a vast array of delicious options at such a large restaurant. The Mercantile will no doubt see an eclectic clientele to match. Check them out at 1579 Hollis Street, open for lunch and dinner every day except Mondays. (Drinks are half-price at the bar between 5 and 7 p.m., every day they're open, and the cocktail program is excellent.)

The Mercantile Social