Originally Published on City Cast Las Vegas
The chef behind SoulBelly BBQ is adding more to his plate. Bruce Kalman is now the food and beverage director of Midtown, a mixed-use condo and hotel development that breaks ground next week in the north end of the Downtown Arts District.
Kalman’s first task was working with executive chef Manny Rivera to revamp the Pepper Club at the English Hotel, which opened in 2022, setting the stage for Midtown to grow around it.
“ We did a massive overhaul,” Kalman says about the restaurant, originally a sushi lounge. “ I pitched the idea of Italian-influenced, ingredient-driven food, which is what I did at Union in Pasadena.”
Those familiar with Kalman’s work might recognize old favorites like the chef’s signature spaghetti, pork meatballs, and mushrooms with polenta milled in house. “You don’t have to reinvent the wheel. You just have to make it great,” Kalman says.
The Pepper Club is keeping the restaurant’s popular ube French Toast, but also adding a Bananas Foster variation with Nutella mousse, caramelized bananas, hazelnut brittle, and candied bacon — “you know, all good things.”
Pasta lovers will want to try the lamb ragu mafaldine (a squiggly, ribbon-like noodle) with ricotta salata and mint gremolata or ravioli stuffed with house-made ricotta, topped with mushrooms and a sauce that includes whey strained from the cheese. “It’s got spring onions, snap peas, and pea tendrils,” Kalman reveals. “It’s spring on a plate.”
The Pepper Club is already introducing new cocktails, toning down the sake program, bringing in new wines (“ because Italian food warrants great wine”), and serving frosé (frozen rosé) in time for pool season.
As Midtown takes shape, Kalman says a bodega for groceries and grab-and-go items will be next on his list, serving both residents and guests in a central courtyard-style setting. Anything is fair game – roast chicken, burritos, breakfast, coffee, and a revival of Kalman’s own Brown Bagger Sandwich Co.
“ I don’t wanna put the cart before the horse, but I have big aspirations,” Kalman adds. “It’s going to be like a grungy New York bodega mixed with Oakville Grocery in Napa, where you can buy aged goat cheese, foie gras terrine, and the best baked bread.”
Midtown will also have a pizzeria, sports bar, food hall with rotating test concepts, and a large production kitchen to house a butcher shop and possibly a bakery. Down the road, don’t be surprised to see a high-end restaurant inside a glass house.
“The idea is, first and foremost, to make sure that the residents of the community are well taken care of and they’re happy with what we’re doing,” Kalman says. “The second is to have the best of the best of everything, which will bring other people. We want this to become the center of the Arts District and give chefs the opportunity to show their stuff.”
Meanwhile, SoulBelly continues to go strong, serving some of the best barbecue in Las Vegas. Kalman says he’s open to expanding the brand elsewhere, but the original remains an Arts District staple, reflecting the growth of the neighborhood itself.
“About five years ago, James Trees (of Esther’s Kitchen) took me over to what is now SoulBelly,” Kalman says. “It was a rundown AAMCO auto shop. So from that until now, the evolution has been absolutely insane to watch.”
