Tapas Bar Will Completely Overhaul Former Home Of Stayner’s Wharf
HALIFAX — The restaurant taking over the former home of Stayner’s Wharf in downtown Halifax will be a completely different experience.
Los Toros will open in Chebucto Place, across from the Halifax ferry terminal, later this year. Owner Khalil Farah says the tapas bar will specialize in Spanish cuisine, with a special focus on paella.
“As much as we can, we’re trying to create a Spanish experience for Haligonians,” says Khalil, who also owns Snappy Tomato and Orso Pub and Grill.
Stayner’s Wharf Pub and Grill had occupied the prime restaurant space in Chebucto Place for more than 18 years. That pub shut down in January (before Covid-19 arrived in Halifax) reportedly due to financial trouble
With Los Toros, Farah says he is excited to bring a fresh new look to the space. He’s been renovating for about three months and says he’s completely transforming everything inside.
“We removed everything, mean everything: flooring, ceiling, furniture, walls,” he said. “It’s a brand-new restaurant.”
Along with a complete aesthetic overhaul, Farah says Los Toros will also be a much different restaurant experience than its predecessor.
He says he has no plans to bring in live music. Instead, he’s focused on the menu, which will revolve primarily around paella but also include tapas, cured meats and cheeses, wine, and vermouth brought in from Spain.
He hasn’t hired a head chef for Los Toros yet but says he created the menu with the help of several chefs he knows.
Farah also plans to pay tribute to Spain and the animal his restaurant takes its name from with an eight-foot-long, bronze bull statue (a replica of the famous charging bull on Wall Street) set directly outside Los Toros.
Farah says that, including the patio, Los Toros will have a seating capacity of about 230 people. Although he’ll likely only be able to seat 55-60 until Covid-19 restrictions are lifted.
If all goes according to plan, Farah says, Los Toros will open on November 1. Although he admitted he might be forced to delay opening “by a month or two” if a second wave of Covid-19 hits the city.