Apple brandy NY strip steak, caramelized cauliflower, hen of the woods mushrooms, and salsa verde. Photo by Remy Thurston

Chef Kyle McKnight, food and beverage director and executive chef at Barrister’s. Photo by T.L. Weaver

When Barrister’s, a new restaurant in Gastonia, opens late next month, it will serve a menu that’s “real food, real tasty.” That’s according to Barrister’s food and beverage director and executive chef, Kyle McKnight.

He won’t give many hints as to what diners can expect, saying his M.O. is smartly to “under-promise and over-deliver.” Yet those who followed McKnight when he was executive chef at Highland Avenue in Hickory know to expect dishes that highlight the ingredients he’s given from local farmers, or, as McKnight says, sourced from friends.

Barrister’s will open in the restored Esquire hotel in downtown Gastonia, which was once the First National Bank of Gastonia, and later lawyers’ offices, inspiring the name of both the hotel and restaurant. Renovations on the historic building have taken more than four years.

The restaurant will seat between 42 and 48 guests in the dining room, with another eight at the bar. There’s also a basement space that will open with a different dining experience, though McKnight is keeping the details to himself, and will also be used as a private dining space.

A rooftop bar will open later this spring or in early summer. As food and beverage director, as well as executive chef, McKnight is over that concept, as well.

As for Barrister’s, the menu will include dishes ranging from snacks and sharable plates to house-made pastas and dishes cooked using a wood-fired grill. The menu is nearly finalized, and one hint McKnight will give is that you’ll always find a sorghum dumpling.

Roulade of game hen with English peas, carrots, mushrooms, and jus. Photo by Remy Thurston

“I’m excited about everything, from the input of my chefs and myself,” McKnight says. “You know, I like to cook very familiar but creative dishes for people. I don’t like exclusivity; I like everything to be inclusive.”

Part of that inclusivity will extend to the beverage program, which will center on wines that pair well with the cuisine (including natural wines), and local beer on draft and in bottles. The cocktail program will include a selection of shrubs, or vinegar-based drinks, for those who prefer not to drink or, like McKnight, are sober. The alcoholic cocktails will include the classics, as well as new takes on those classics.

McKnight’s team includes pastry chef Hannah Woociker and chef de cuisine Dean Orr. Dishes from the bread and butter to a North Carolina trout over sea island red peas, yellow eyes, scarlet runner beans and celery root served with pot likker will be based on high-quality ingredients and dishes made from scratch.

“Everything we make is in-house, from pasta to breads to whole lamb butchery to charcuterie,” McKnight says. Photos the restaurant have posted on Instagram hint that Barrister’s may be the next restaurant to make a big name for itself in the area. Follow along here. —Kristen Wile