A major corner in downtown Thiensville will undergo a facelift this summer when a Himalayan-flavored restaurant will open at 105 S. Main St. and the headquarters for CORE Consulting LLC will move to 107 W. Buntrock Ave., next to the restaurant.
The restaurant, named The Cheel, will occupy a three-story, 1,600-square-foot historic building.
CORE Consulting will relocate its offices, currently located at 163 Green Bay Road in Thiensville, to a three-story, 9,000-square-foot building behind the restaurant.
The Cheel, owned by husband and wife entrepreneurial team Jesse and Barkha Daily, is slated to open July 19 with a menu blending American and Himalayan dishes.
Jesse is also a partner at CORE Consulting, an engineering services firm.
The Cheel’s menu will reflect the backgrounds and palates of the owners, who hail from opposite sides of the globe – Jesse is a native of Boise, Idaho, while Barkha is from Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal, in the Himalayan region.
While American dishes on The Cheel’s menu will feature “a Himalayan twist,” according to the owners, Himalayan fare will include flavors from Nepali, Tibetan, Burmese and North Indian cultures.
Those dishes will follow Barkha’s family recipes. Her parents grew up in Burma (now Myanmar) and India, and she plans to incorporate their fusion of cultures into the restaurant to distinguish it from other Wisconsin dining spots with similar ethnic cuisine.
She describes the menu as a “flavor altitude” with “flavors from the Himalayas to the Rockies.”
“We are elevating your palates and your flavors to the next level,” Barkha said.
Anchoring the Himalayan small plates and entrees will be “momo,” a Nepalese dumpling that is filled with seasoned meats and raw vegetables and then steamed, baked or sautéed and served with dipping sauces known as “achars.”
The Dailys, who peg themselves as “foodies,” also aim to incorporate locally-sourced ingredients and authentic Nepali spices into the menu offerings.
“We want it to be as wholesome and as fully prepared from scratch in house as possible,” Barkha said.
The Cheel will serve cocktails celebrating the 1930s, when the 1890s-era building was converted into a bar as Prohibition ended. When Jesse and Barkha bought the building, it was in a condemned and razed status. The building has been vacant for two to three years.
“This building used to be the eyesore of Thiensville,” Jesse said.
Following extensive renovations, which have revived some of the building’s 19th Century characteristics, the Dailys hope the building will become “the flagship of the Thiensville/Mequon area.”
The Cheel’s exterior will be marked by a steeple topped with a bronze eagle, in honor of the Nepalese name’s English translation, “eagle.”
The restaurant’s interior will boast traditional décor from Nepal and will offer patrons a cozy, relaxed dining room and bar where they can “cheel out,” the owners said.
When the restaurant opens, seating will accommodate about 60 patrons with room for 30 more on an attached outdoor patio. During year two of business operations, Jesse and Barkha plan to add another dining space and a terrace on the second floor.
Behind The Cheel building, CORE Consulting plans to move into its new location in August. That building was constructed in the 1950s. It was originally a funeral parlor and was later converted into a salon.
CORE is outgrowing its current office, which the firm leases. The new building will offer the company ample room to expand in real estate that it owns, Jesse Daily said. The seven-year-old firm, which was named to the Inc. 500 list in 2011 and was a MMAC Future 50 Master Mettle winner in 2012, currently has about 70 employees.
Daily and his business partner at CORE, Matthew Buerosse, plan to redesign the first floor of the firm’s new location in order to convert it into an office studio. They will also create a 3D printing and rapid prototyping lab in the basement.
As The Cheel and CORE Consulting’s new office space take shape this summer in one of the most visible areas in the village, their owners hope to draw more traffic and patrons to the area, which has struggled to spur business development in the past 15 years.
About 20,000 people drive through downtown Thiensville every day, which opens up a significant opportunity for the village to evolve into more of a destination, Jesse said.
“We don’t just want to be a pass through,” he said. “We want people to stop and experience Thiensville.”
