Bryan Sikora's La Fia soft-opens in Wilmington
The alum of Django, Talula's Table, and a.kitchen is in downtown.
Today is the launch of the market side of the corner property, which sells gourmet groceries and to-go breakfast and lunch sandwiches, salads and other prepared foods.
The bistro side is up for a July 9 debut, serving lunch and dinner Tuesday to Saturday (8 a.m. to 10 p.m. weekdays, 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturdays).
Bryan Sikora may be a newcomer to Wilmington, but he's been on the Philly scene since 2001 when he and his now-ex-wife, Aimee Olexy, opened the BYOB hit Django in Queen Village, followed by a 2005 move to the nearby Brandywine Valley with Talula's Table in Kennett Square. After their split, he knocked around with projects upstate and at the Delaware beaches before he set up the kitchen at the 2011 opening of a.kitchen near Rittenhouse Square. (Olexy still owns Talula's Table and has branched into Washington Square with Talula's Garden and the forthcoming Talula's Daily.)
La Fia's airy, 35-seat bistro (plus outdoor seating eventually) has its original tin ceiling, floors and tables made of reclaimed wood, pendant lighting, eight-seat bar, and murals painted by Sikora himself.
La Fia is named for Bryan and Andrea's 2½-year-old daughter, Sofia. (Talula's is named for Sikora and Olexy's daughter, Annalee Talula Rae).
An early La Fia menu shows breakfast sandwiches (served 8 to 10:30 a.m.) including "the Moon Shiner" (egg, Surryano Ham, Seven Sisters cheese on English muffin) and "the Amigo" (egg, quesa fresco, smoked chorizo, salsa, on a corn tortilla).
Lunch to go (11 a.m. to 5 p.m.) includes a pizza tart, soups, sandwiches served with goose-fat fries, and salads.
Dinner menu (entrees will start around $17) include mushroom lasagna, roasted pork shoulder, braised short rib, fettuccine, and lamb loin.