Chefs have a way of anchoring themselves to a neighborhood. Tandy Wilson in Germantown. Margot McCormack in Five Points. Like homeowners, they settle in, commit to their community, and play an active role in what unfolds around them. In the Gulch, Matt Bolus can claim the resident chef role.
Nathan Zucker
Matt Bolus
In many ways, he and the Gulch have come up together. Bolus arrived in Nashville to work at Watermark in 2011 (once one of the only dining destinations in the neighborhood) before landing at Flyte, and then opening his own space, The 404 Kitchen. Eventually, Watermark closed and Bolus and his partners took over the space, moving The 404 into a much bigger building with a multiple levels and a full bar.
As Bolus’s career has changed, so too has the scenery. Besides new hotels and constant construction, the Gulch has become a tourist hub, with lines stretching a block for mural selfies and brunch, and motorized scooters careening and convening along the streets.
With growth all around him, it was only a matter of time before Bolus added another restaurant. This winter, he and his partners, including restaurateur Howard Greenstone (Adele’s, Emmy Squared), took over the space that was formerly Fin & Pearl and turned it into Pemrose.
It’s two short blocks from The 404—a smart distance for a chef who wants to have his hands on the menus and be behind the line each night, if needed. He was also able to retain some of the kitchen staff, including the talented chef Shawney Severns, who runs the operation day-to-day.
Nathan Zucker
Calling its menu “comfortable coastal cuisine,” Pemrose offers an ambitious selection of seafood, but also aims to appeal to the masses. There’s a short sushi menu, raw bar towers, daily catch specials, and poke salad, but also pork ragu over gemelli and a sturdy ribeye. At first, the team tested the waters with a bigger list of dishes, and even an omakase menu, but they’ve since pared back.
“I’ve learned that we need make it more mainstream, more approachable, to build the trust. It’s still me, still my menu. But once we build trust, there are a thousand ideas that we want to implement,” Bolus says.
The menu covers a lot of ocean-bearing territory. That short list of sushi rolls is playful—an admittedly untrained sushi chef, Bolus says he’s mostly doing it for fun. “There are so many variables, just on the rice alone, but I’m learning and really want to play with it,” he says. A “bagel” roll, for instance, had salmon, cream, cheese, and everything bagel spices while a spicy tuna roll was coated in black and white sesame seeds and sliced Fresno chiles.
What to Order:
King crab legs, $45
House smoked fish dip, $14
Mussels and fries, $20
Lobster roll (hot or cold), $26
Tequila-glazed salmon, $25
Nathan Zucker
Other playful dishes include shrimp and lobster corn dogs, a summertime childhood classic reimagined. The house smoked fish dip, when we had it, arrived with a bag of Fritos for dipping. And then there are the king crab legs, long and packed with juicy meat that’s topped with the addictive combo of Duke’s mayonnaise and caviar. The legs are harvested from the Bering Sea, Bolus says, and meat from the knuckles and claws is also going into the California roll.
Nathan Zucker
There’s a solid crab and corn chowder with fat slices of andouille. And an entrée of tequila-glazed salmon shows off a lovely cut of fish, set over a bed of risotto inflected with Mexican flavors, like charred corn, cotija cheese, chili powder, and lime. Our top entree pick has to be the mussels and fries, a big bowl of meaty mussels in a garlicky wine broth that comes with a sidecar of skinny fries to sop up the juice.
Nathan Zucker
A point of pride for the chef is his lobster rolls in two styles—cold and hot. The cold version, attributed to the lobster shacks of coastal Maine, tosses the cold, poached meat in a light, lemony dressing while the hot, hailing from the coast of Connecticut, starts with a buerre monté made from lobster stock and ends with a luscious bite of meat, butter, and toasted bread. You’ll be hard-pressed to resist at least one.
Pemrose is open for lunch and dinner, with a strong happy hour full of sushi specials plus nice deals on beverages. To drink, there are ocean-breeze inspired cocktails, like the Boy Named Sue with Plantation Rum, mango, and lime, and a brief by-the-glass list, which leans the same way—there’s a zippy New Zealand sauvignon blanc or a California Gewurztraminer that both pair well with the seafood dishes.
For Bolus, Pemrose has certainly allowed him to spread his sails—while still keeping a firm grip on the rudder.
Pemrose, 211 12thAve. S., 615-577-6688; Pemrosenashville.com