Former 732 Social space to become Bistro Voliere, second project by Doc Crow’s investor group

Two-thirds of the Doc Crow's/Bistro Voyeur investors. From left to right, Michael Ton, Brett Davis and Steven Ton.

(Editor’s note: This posted was updated at 9:15 on December 27. The original version mischaracterized the closing of 732 Social.)

We’d been hearing rumblings from our contractor sources that work was under way on the former 732 Social space in NuLu.

Then, we got an email telling us the same investor/chef/management team who opened Doc Crow’s downtown at 127 W. Main St. last February were planning a French Bistro in the space: “Perhaps Insider Louisville might want to look into this positive development.”

Indeed we did, and Brett Davis called us back to tell us the space at 732 E. Market St. in The Green Building will be Bistro Voliere (bird house or aviary, in French) by April.

Bistro Voliere partners are Davis and his partners in Doc Crow’s – Steven Ton, Michael Ton and Chip Hamm.

The goal is to create an authentic, inexpensive bristro, with “French peasant food. Which isn’t that different from Doc Crow’s. They’ll both have simple ‘crave/comfort’ foods,” Davis said.

The group will oversee the new operation, but they haven’t selected a bistro chef, he said.

The Ton brothers also own Basa, a French-Vietnamese fusion restaurant at 2244 Frankfort Ave. in Clifton.

The bistro will used the smallish, 1,500-square-foot 732 Social footprint, but will be redecorated, Davis said. Which explains the relatively quick turn-around, he said: “We won’t be knocking out any walls.”

By his count, Davis said, Bistro Voliere will be either be restaurant No. 12 or No. 13 in NuLu counting projects under way such as Rye and Decca.

When it opened in September  2008, 732 Social launched what has become in three brief years Louisville’s first New Wave dining scene, with most operations focused on foodie/locavore trends.

Chef Bruce Ucán at East Market Street mainstay Mayan Cafe told Insider Louisville last May that 732 opening “pumped everything up,” with business increasing all over NuLu as each new restaurant opened.

Which is what he and his partners are depending on, Davis said.

“Do you know what ‘megalopoly’ means?” he said. “That’s where if McDonalds opens on one corner, a Yum! Brands store opens on the opposite corner. And you end up with a restaurant zone.

“We think this is where East Market currently is going.”

Ironically, 732 Social was one of the first on the new corridor to close after a dispute between 732 Social co-owner Jason Lewellyn, Lewellyn’s then-partners the Tons and The Green Building co-owner Gill Holland, with the courts ultimately ruling in favor of Holland and the Tons.

Davis said Bisto Voliere will to capture the real Parisian bistro ambiance, which means “cozy and intimate.

“Everyone will get to know their neighbors well.”

The current NuLu lineup:

The Bodega at Felice, 829 E. Market. A market, deli and coffee bar all in one.

Cake Flour on Market, 909 E. Market. Breakfast Pastries, cakes & cupcakes, pastries , specialty baking, cookies and bars, beverages and bread.

Decca (opening in 2012), 812 E. Market. Decca owners promise to bring a San Francisco esthetic to Louisville.

Harvest, 624 E. Market. Locavore pioneer/ farmer Ivor Chadkowski’s showcase for high-quality, local foods.

Ghyslian on Market, 725 E. Market. Part of Ghyslain Maurais’ four-location network of French-style patisseries and retail/wholesales chocolate business.

Mayan Cafe, 813 E. Market. An authentic Mayan restaurant featuring Bruce Ucán recipes inspired by his native Yucatan.

Mozz, 445 E. Market. Grisanti alum Mathew Antonovich’s high-end Italian restaurant featuring farm-to-table recipes from Lazio-Rome-Naples, Tuscany-Florence, and Emilia-Romagna regions.

Garage Bar , 700 E. Market. Garage Bar featurse wood-fired pizza from Proof on Main Chef Michael Paley.

Please & Thank You, 800 E. Market.

Rye, 900 E. Market, is scheduled to open early next month.

Taco Punk, (Opening next month in the former Toast on Market Space at 736. E. Market.)

Toast on Market, 620 E. Market. Known for hearty breakfasts and a C-level clientele on weekday mornings.

Wiltshire on Market, 636 E. Market. Caterer Susan Hirschberg said she’d never have a restaurant. Now she has a loyal following at Wiltshire on Market, which offers an ever-changing menu.