As mentioned, the main floor was also 1,000 square feet, which made the potential for restaurant seating difficult without getting creative. “With only 18 seats on the interior of the space, I knew it might be challenging to find an operator who understood the vision for the space and understood the passion I had for neighborhoods and the experience I was trying to create,” said Halbach. After some discussion and convincing, Barry Putzke and Jordan Taylor (of Bread & Circus Sandwich Kitchen , En Place Catering , and Pizza Cheeks ) and Patrick Sayler (of the Sioux Falls Food Co+op ) understood the experience and the vibe that Halbach thought the building deserved. The talented team’s focus was the idea of a comfortable neighborhood café with scratch- made breakfast items in an intimate setting. Together they came up with the name: Perch. “The name Perch came from the idea that we’re in the Cathedral and Pettigrew Neighborhood , as we’re ‘perched’ above downtown,” explained Halbach. Originally planned to open January of 2024, material delays and general construction issues caused Perch to open July of 2024. That didn’t stop the Perch crew from hosting a slew of brunch pop-ups at En Place Catering’s event room. “The pop-ups gave us an unique opportunity to test out a few different menu items and train our staff off-site before the restaurant opened,” said Halbach. “It really helped us work out the new-restaurant kinks.” “I’m not someone who rushes to furnish a space. I feel like you need to spend some time in the space before you add furniture and décor items, and the space will mature and change as you spend more time in the space.” Alex Halbach
76 | 605MAGAZINE.COM
Made with FlippingBook - Share PDF online