A sneak peek at Mt. Airy’s new Goat Hollow restaurant

Patrons of the new Goat Hollow restaurant in Mount Airy will have a feast for their eyes as well as their bellies when they dine at the Mt. Pleasant Avenue eatery.

Neil Campbell, owner of Old City’s Race Street Café, and partner, Andy Shahan, will open the completely revamped space near Lincoln Drive at 6 p.m. on Monday.

The grand opening will feature an ice sculpture – with a ribbon encased in the ice – designed by Peter Slavin of Chestnut Hill. The ribbon will be “cut” with chainsaws rather than the traditional ribbon cutting ceremony.

“It’s the Goat Hollow style. We like to do everything a little different,” quipped Campbell.

Lunch service will begin on Tuesday. The restaurant will be open seven days a week, from 11:30 a.m. until 2 a.m. Brunch will also be offered starting around the first weekend of February, from 10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., on both Saturday and Sunday.

Design

While dining on Chef Adam Glickman’s American Brasserie cuisine, customers will take in an interior created by local artisans and Design Nehez, a Philadelphia-based design firm.

“We’ve opened up the spaces a lot to join rooms together,” said Campbell.

The result is a series of enclaves that foster Campbell and Shahan’s interest in giving patrons an intimate, cozy dining experience.

The 63-seat first floor dining and bar area features numerous reclaimed wood features. Philadelphia Salvage Company handcrafted table tops from salvaged lumber from a Germantown factory. Other reclaimed wood elements can be found in the barn siding walls, wait stations and 12-seat bar. Recycled floor joists and angle iron make up the rustic shelving behind the bar.

A centrally placed hearth with a wall of reclaimed Standard bricks and a wood burning stove is the focal point downstairs.

Another distinctive feature is the wallpaper placed throughout the interior. It was designed by photographic artist Julia Blaukopf. Blaukopf took photographs of the decaying exterior of the property prior to renovation and then turned those images into wall covering.

A recycled cider jug chandelier is the visual centerpiece of the upstairs dining area, which can seat up to 37 customers.

Outside, the restored exterior side balcony is a place where patrons can enjoy cocktails and conversation while waiting for a table. The balcony overlooks what will eventually become an outdoor dining terrace which will seat 50 people.

Smoking will not be permitted on any part of the property.

Music and food

Music will also be a component of the new restaurant.

Campbell said live music will cover a variety of genres, mostly of the acoustic and somewhat understated variety. Musicians and DJs will be able to play through the restaurant’s own sound system. Shahan, who plays drums and sings with The Miners, said he expects a scaled down version of his band to perform on occasion.

“It’ll happen a little bit down the road,” he said.

Of course, food and drink will always be the primary attraction. Glickman, a former Mount Airy resident, said he’s thrilled to be helming the kitchen.

Goat Hollow has hired 30 staff members, around 60 percent coming from Northwest Philadelphia area, Shahan said.

“It’s was really nice to be able to hire from the area. That was very important to us,” he said.

Campbell will divide his time between Race Street Café and Goat Hollow, while Shahan will be a full time fixture at the restaurant.

Campbell said Goat Hollow is not singularly a neighborhood place, though he expects mostly to draw customers from the local area. He anticipates the restaurant will also bring in folks from Center City and the suburbs.

“I think that we have a broad enough brand that we’re doing here, that we’ll be able to appeal to people from various neighborhoods,” he said.