Grace & Proper adds a cozy, Euro-style bar to a corner in South Philadelphia

Restaurants can take a year or more from inception to opening. Grace & Proper falls squarely into “or more.”

Chris Fetfatzes and Heather Annechiarico bought the building on the corner of Eighth and Carpenter Streets in April 2013, when their only restaurant was Hawthornes Beer Cafe, five blocks away.

Nine and a half years, three children, several more restaurants, a delivery business, two fires, and one pandemic later, they will launch Grace & Proper on Nov. 18. Operations director Susan Freeman, who has worked with the couple since Hawthornes opened nearly 14 years ago, is a partner at this handsome Bella Vista barroom, a block from the Italian Market.

Fetfatzes describes Grace & Proper as a “vintage European corner bar, with toasts, baked goods, spritzes, and wines — all presented classily but super approachable, budget-friendly with casual service, but there’s a debonair-ness about it. It’s proper.”

It’s vintage, all right. The hexagonal mosaic tile floor, walls, tin ceiling, window panes, and some lighting are original. A century ago, it was G.T. Manlio Drugs and then became Sam Grasso’s Deli.

“We were pulling drywall off and we were left with this beautiful, multilayered wallpaper with this amber-ish cigarette-smoke look,” Fetfatzes said. “It was patinaed. It was a gift.” They’ve left it much as they found it, electing to expose some brick. Some pieces were thrifted, including china serving plates and barstools. Window sills were upholstered, and the bar and shelving were added. It holds about 40, plus standing room. Seasonally, there will be 30 seats outside.

Chef Wesley Sherlock’s food acknowledges both Fetfatzes’ father, Marinos, who is from Crete (and sends back olive oil from his farm), and his late mother, Olimpia, who was born in Portugal. (Hanging on a coat hook on the back wall is her jacket, a tribute.)

The menu is a collection of bar food, laid out on chalkboards. Nothing entrée-sized. You order at the counter. Share a big plate of black truffle potato chip with Calabrian picante salami, or bread, butter, and radishes, or a peppery plate of boquerones, or tuck into a mortadella sandwich or a bifana on a Portuguese roll from Teixeira’s Bakery in Newark, N.J., which also provides desserts such as pastel de nata and bola de berlim.

For such a small spot, Scott Rodrigue’s bar list is deep and ambitious, with different price points. Portugal’s Super Bock is on the beer tower, poured alongside a dedicated line for Philadelphia’s Attic Brewing, a rotating seasonal handle that premieres with Dupont Avec Les Bons Voeux, and a dry Basque-style cider.

There will be pours of wines from Portugal, Spain, Italy, Greece, and France. More than half of the bourbon is from Buffalo Trace Distillery. There will be flights of agave distillate from Rezpiral, Derrumbes, Venenosa, and Siembra Valles; Scotches from Edrington; obscure amari; and an unpeated Indian single malt from Goa. Cocktails are priced at $10 to $14, including the Porto Tonico (Ferreira White Port, Betty Buzz tonic, grapefruit, mint) and Good Giving & Game (saffron-infused gin, honey, and lime, 24-karat gold leaf).

Rodrigue makes his own crystal-clear ice in the basement, freezing it slowly from the top down. Impurities and air settle at the bottom. This makes for slower melting and a better drink, Rodrigue says.

Fetfatzes and Annechiarico started in the business in 2009 with Hawthornes, a family friendly cafe with an enormous beer selection, at 11th and Fitzwater Streets, up the street from his parents’ Bella Vista Beer Distributors. In 2012, the couple took over the Tritone bar at 1508 South St. with the bar-restaurant Cambridge. In early 2014, Hawthornes was heavily damaged by fire but returned 11 months later.

Fetfatzes created a beer-delivery company in 2015 that morphed into a more expansive delivery service called Quick Sip. That year, the couple also opened Tio Flores, a Mexican cantina, at 16th and South Streets. In January 2020, they opened a bottle shop/bar called Wine Dive next door to Cambridge. In mid-2021, they converted Cambridge into Sonny’s Cocktail Joint. In April 2022, they were preparing to open The Rabbit, an underground speakeasy-type bar, beneath Sonny’s and Wine Dive when a fire in an apartment above the restaurants sent water cascading; the entire site is still one big insurance headache.

Grace & Proper’s hours are 4 p.m. to midnight Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday, noon to 1 a.m. Friday and Saturday, and noon to midnight Sunday; it’s closed Tuesday.