St. Francis Restaurant Now Open

Chef-owner Aaron Chamberlin’s long-awaited St. Francis — located in a completely renovated midcentury Harold Ekman building at 111 E. Camelback — is open for dinner tonight.

According to some friends who went to the restaurant’s preview last night, tonight’s soft-opening will have a limited menu.

A big wood-fired oven is the centerpiece of the kitchen, where the crew is baking fresh flatbread with chanterelle mushrooms, and cooking up Chamberlin’s signature seafood stew, which he compares to bouillabaise.

Chamberlin tells me that it’s a limited menu, only 10 items to start, and a limited wine list. They’ll be adding more dishes next week.

Business hours are 4 to 10 p.m., Tuesday through Sunday.