by Bailey White
Staff Writer
Downtown won’t be short a restaurant even though Farah’s of Downtown has closed its Laura Street location. The space will be occupied by Cafe Magnificat, a breakfast-and-lunch restaurant scheduled to open this week.
Owners Benoit and Cathy Desclef said they are looking forward to having their own place.
“I always wanted to open my own restaurant,” said Benoit Desclefs. “The opportunity showed up and I grabbed it.”
Desclefs brings with him years of experience in the restaurant industry. At 15, he attended culinary school in the South of France (he is originally from just outside of Paris) and has spent successive years in kitchen, hotel and restaurant management.
His last position was head chef of at JJ’s Cuisine and Wine in Ponte Vedra Beach.
The food at The Magnificat Cafe will be a mix of American continental and French with salads, sandwiches and soups.
“I have a salad nicoice, a curry almond chicken salad and homemade soups,” said Benoit Desclefs. “We’ll have things that are a little different from the rest.”
The cafe will also offer speciality coffees.
Both Cathy and Benoit say they are excited about being downtown.
“I think it’s a great location,” said Cathy Desclef. “Everything seems to be going toward downtown.”