What’s in the name Central Food? Chef Blaine’s cautious restaurant moniker

Kind of big news on the local food business front:

Spokane chef David Blaine announced he’ll open Central Food, a new restaurant in the first commercial building in the Kendall Yards mixed use development.

This is the big project being done by Greenstone Commercial along the Spokane River, in the area west of the Monroe Street Bridge. Greenstone took over the project after developer Marshall Chesrown bailed.

Blaine has done restaurants and selective cuisine for more than 20 years. He’s going to use 3,000 square feet in a building just south of the state Court of Appeals.

It’s the first chef-owned place that Blaine has attempted. For the past seven year’s he’s been head chef for Spokane eatery Latah Bistro.

He said “I don’t think I’d be able to live with myself if I passed on that location.” He said he considers the Kendall Yards mixed-use development one of the city’s most dynamic projects.

“It has so much energy behind it. I can’t think of any downsides to doing this,” he added.

He expects to hire about 25 people and open the restaurant in December.

“At this point, I have more questions than answers,” he said, about the full scope of the cuisine, the thematic focus and how he intends to market the business.