Marta and Marc Bianchini expand their On the Marc restaurant group with a new place called Indulge in the space formerly occupied by Nectar, 708 N. Milwaukee St.

"Milwaukee Street has become one of the city's hottest 'restaurant rows' -- a place to be and be seen -- a place to enjoy some of the best food and nightlife the city has to offer, " said Marc Bianchini.  

"As one of the first restaurateurs to invest in the area, I'm very excited about how it's shaping up and feel strongly that Milwaukee Street will continue to grow and thrive -- which is why I'm excited about our new property," added Bianchini, who helped start Carnevor on Milwaukee Street, owns Osteria Del Mondo and whose wife Marta runs Cubanitas, also on Milwaukee St.

Recently, I asked Bianchini a few questions about Indulge. Below are his answers.

OMC: What can you tell us about the concept?

MB: We're thrilled to introduce a new culinary and entertainment concept to Milwaukee Street and to the city as a whole.  Our new venture is called "Indulge." And that's how we want people to feel when they're there -- that they're indulging in life's simple pleasures, presented in an approachable, comfortable, welcoming environment.

Indulge's central focus is wine.  We'll offer a wide variety of familiar and hard to find vintages. In addition to wonderful wines, Indulge will offer foods that provide the perfect accompaniment to wine.

You'll be able to stop in after work, before a show or at the end of the night for a fantastic and affordable glass of wine in a sophisticated, yet laid-back setting.

Indulge will offer wine by the glass or retail bottles of wine to take home. Because we're both a restaurant and a wine retailer, we'll be able to offer a very different and interesting selection of wines from all around the world. Some will be quite familiar, while others will give you the opportunity to experience something you may never have tried before.

Indulge will also be a great place for lunch. You'll be able to grab something to take back to the office or stop in for a quick bite with co-workers. We'll have interesting and different lunch items every day.

OMC: Who is designing the space for you?

MB: I'm working with a design firm from outside the city that I've worked with in the past.

OMC: Is there a place that you are modeling this after?

MB: Not exactly. Indulge brings together a number of good things in life -- things that used to be somewhat exclusive and expensive -- that I want to help make more accessible. That's what Indulge, and frankly all of my restaurants are about -- offering a taste of luxury in an approachable, affordable manner. Turning luxury into an everyday pleasure.

OMC: Target opening day?

MB: September.

OMC: Anything else exciting?  How's the summer been overall?
 
MB: We're always working on something new. Indulge will be bringing the best in food and drink to people in Milwaukee and I'm always looking at opportunities to do more of that.
 
For example, we've just made a few changes at Osteria Del Mondo to make it a bit more accessible. To many, Osteria was considered a "special occasion" restaurant. Now with our new menu and a new wine list, we've evolved it into more of that "everyday pleasures" type of restaurant I just mentioned. Our emphasis remains on creating amazing food, but we've made it just a bit more approachable. The food is still amazing.
 
We're humbled with the overwhelming success of Cubanitas. People have enthusiastically embraced the authentic flavors and atmosphere there, and that's exactly the type of reaction what we're looking for with all of my restaurants.
 
I've got some very interesting things in the works -- stay tuned.