SHORELINE — Brothers Chris and Brian Hill have merged their passion for good food with their hometown.
The outcome is a new Richmond Beach restaurant: Hills’ Food, Wine and Catering.
The Hill siblings co-own the new Richmond Beach eatery, located on Richmond Beach Road at the site of the former Sweet Basil’s Cafe, which was open for almost four years.
“It’s fun to be back in the neighborhood,” Chris Hill, 42, said. “Everyday I meet someone who I have a connection with; someone’s mom or aunt or someone from the neighborhood.”
The brothers were looking to open a restaurant in Richmond Beach when they met the owner of Sweet Basil’s Cafe, Susie Wirth, who at the time was looking for a chef to cook for her once-a-week wine dinners. Brian Hill, 38, accepted the position on a contract basis and in August Wirth agreed to sell the restaurant to both brothers.
“We were looking for something in Richmond Beach,” Chris Hill said. “We came here for a cup of coffee and met the previous owner and ended up buying this place on Oct. 1.”
The restaurant never closed during the transition of owners. Rather, changes have been implemented on an ongoing basis during the past two months.
“Over the past two months it has been morphing into what it is today,” Chris Hill said. “It is slowly changing.”
Although the decor is somewhat reminiscent of the former cafe, more than the name has changed. Sweet Basil’s Cafe was known as a place to get a quick espresso, savory berry bar or lunch and do a little shopping. Retail included specialty goods such as hand-made soap, clothing and wine.
“The biggest change for customers is that this was always a place to have soup, salad and start shopping,” Chris Hill said. “That’s what made Sweet Basil’s Sweet Basil’s; we need to be our own place now.”
Although Hills’ will not offer a selection of clothing or other items, the owners intend to retain the wide variety of wines. With a $5 corkage fee, any patron who desires a bottle of wine with their meal can select a bottle off the shelf and will get the retail price plus $5.
“They can buy a bottle, it is pretty fun,” Chris Hill said. “A lot of people get up and roam around, (it’s a cause) for some action.”
The brothers describe the fare as “eclectic menu items,” and not just one cuisine. Popular dinner choices range from lamb shank to pan-roasted mussels and clams to Texas chili and two-cheese-and-eggplant moussaka. Brian Hill does all the cooking, except for baked breakfast items like scones and muffins that are prepared by a baker.
“Richmond Beach is due for a good dining place,” Brian Hill said. “It has been very well-received.”
Both brothers have backgrounds in cooking. Chris Hill also owns Matt’s Rotisserie and Oyster Lounge at Redmond Town Center, which has been open about three years. He was originally a chef at the restaurant, after attending Culinary Institute of America in New York. The Wallingford resident now divides his time evenly between both locales.
Brian Hill, 38, who lives in Richmond Beach, has about 11 years of catering experience. He previously owned a catering company located in the Capitol Hill area and was sous-chef at Broadmoor Golf Club for about five years.
The Hill brothers have four other siblings and their mother, Cristalle Cordova, 65, works at the restaurant handling catering contracts. Brian Hill’s teenage son also is a dishwasher.
Future plans include wine sampling on Saturdays and wine dinners, which were put on hold during the transition. The brothers also will be remodeling the kitchen and expanding the bar.
“It is always going to be evolving and changing so it can stay fresh,” Brian Hill said. “The menu has changed three times since I started.”
The clientele is largely Richmond Beach residents, Brian Hill said, although many patrons travel from nearby Edmonds and Lake Forest Park.
The place employs about seven full-time people, with 15 total employees. All employees from Sweet Basil’s were kept on.
Marcie Erving, who currently is employed by the Hills, previously worked at Sweet Basil’s Cafe for one year before the change in ownership. Erving said customers enjoy the new items on the menu and the fact that they serve dinner more than one night a week.
“They definitely expanded the menu,” Erving said, “and they don’t have clothes anymore.”
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