Photo by Ed Williams
Some restaurant shuffling is happening on Manayunk’s Main Street. Gigi Italian Bistro will transition to and reopen at 4371 Main Street, the former home of Maya.J Restaurant.
“Gigi has been so well received by the local Manayunk community and beyond that we now have the need to expand into a larger space,” says chef and owner Craig Wilson. “We have made the decision to take over our sister restaurant space at Maya.J.”
Maya.J’s space has been changed to aesthetically resemble the original Gigi space, and will continue to collectively display its proud “Wall of Gigis” in their new home.
The new Gigi will have the same menu items as before, plus a new Mediterranean Italian tapas selection. New dishes include grilled Spanish octopus with roasted garlic and Italian hots over bruschetta, Gigi spicy meatballs, lobster mac ‘n cheese, sautéed green beans Puttanesca, grilled baby lamb chops with hot pepper pesto, tuna crudo and burrata cheese with warm beet salad and almond pesto.
In addition to the expanded menu, the new space will include a full bar. Wilson has worked closely with Frank Taormina of Majestic Wines to develop an interesting yet affordable wine selection, with the house red and white starting at $5 per glass. Gigi will continue to honor the BYOB concept for the first few months to allow customers to get acclimated to the in-house offerings. The bar will continue to have cocktails and beers on tap.
The original Gigi space will be transformed into a private dining and event space with an extensive in-house and off-site catering menu for events such as weddings, birthday celebrations, corporate events and more.
“We could not be happier about the Gigi expansion,” says Jane Lipton, executive director of the Manayunk Development Corporation. “I have to congratulate the Gigi and Maya.J teams on their success and look forward to an expanded Gigi menu that offers the best of both restaurants.”
4371 Main St., Manayunk, (267) 323-2899, www.gigiphiladelphia.com
