From the outside it looks like it's still a church, but a Bardstown Road spot will soon be home to a Mexican barbecue restaurant.
The former church at 1838 Bardstown Road was redeveloped into loft-style apartments, and the last component of it is restaurant space, which will be filled by restaurateur Aaron Diaz's concept, Noche Mexican BBQ.
He hopes to open it this fall.
Diaz, who is from Midland, Texas, said he remembers his dad hosting big, loud cookouts when he was growing up.
"In Texas, being Hispanic, when we celebrated, we'd do a cookout and a barbecue, but all of our sides are Mexican sides," Diaz explained. "Everything we had has a little kick to it. We didn’t have much, but this brought us together and we were happy."
Spicy street corn, Mexican beans and rice, elotes and more will be on Noche's menu, along with Diaz's father's recipe for brisket and ribs.
He said it will be the first Texas barbecue in the city, since most others are sweeter and more like Alabama or Tennessee barbecue, which Diaz noted is also good. But Texas barbecue has that bite to it, he explained.
Diaz said everything will be true to his background — Texas barbecue paired with some Mexican sides and some other items like plantains and sweet potato fries.
"The menu is basically my story. It’s the food that I grew up with and Louisville food," he said.
All of the meat will be smoked or grilled, and it will be made into traditionally Mexican entrees, like tacos, flautas, fajitas or nachos.
Diaz comes from a background in restaurants. He started as a dishwasher at a locally owned restaurant called Monterey Cafe in Midland, and eventually moved into a serving position. He went on to work for Genghis Grill franchises in Texas before moving to Louisville to open the Genghis Grill at Springhurst Towne Center, which has since closed.
For two years, he was the general manager at Louisville's Genghis Grill, where he said he learned most of what he knows about restaurant operations.
He's hoping to find an artist to paint a large sugar skull mural on one side of the restaurant, and the whole space will will have a Day of the Dead theme, like the 2017 Disney movie "Coco."
Noche Mexican BBQ will be about 3,400 square feet, with a 400 to 500-square-foot patio space on Bardstown Road. The space is in the former sanctuary of what was once Calvary Lutheran Church. Because of its historic designation, the space will keep its stained glass windows, organ pipes on a mezzanine and the original light fixtures.
Diaz said he and his mother, who prefers to remain a silent partner, will put about $200,000 of their own money into the project, and will finance the rest with a business loan. He wasn't sure how much it would cost in total.
The construction will include building a kitchen space, a bar, redoing the choir loft to make it seating space, and above the kitchen, across from the choir loft Diaz plans to add another loft/mezzanine space to add more seating. He said the inside should seat around 150 people in total, including a 13-seat bar.
Diaz will be the operating partner of the venture, which is his first stab at ownership. He has already started to get together his team of managers, including longtime co-worker and friend Brooke Chavez, who is the director of marketing. Aimee Misiewicz and Destinee Patterson will also join his management team.
Diaz intends to be there for a while, and signed a 10-year lease. He said he thinks the menu is solid, as long as people come to try the food.
"I know the menu works. Every Mexican in the country eats this when they cook out, they just don’t charge for it," he said. "I really think Louisville is going to embrace it. It’s just weird enough that Louisville will love it."
