Missoula Will See a New Restaurant Open Next Week

I had a thought a couple of weeks ago - and didn't even realize that it would soon be a reality. I was down in the Old Sawmill District neighborhood near Ogren Park and I was thinking about how there really wasn't a place to eat. I know, Dog & Bicycle is right there, but I'm talking about a restaurant for the area. It seems like any place to eat would keep busy just from the amount of people living right there - plus foot traffic from PaddleHeads' games.....and the new building for a tech company that's being built right in that area. I didn't know it at the time, but a restaurant is set to open behind Dog & Bicycle - maybe as early as next week.

Missoulians will soon be able to have dinner (and a beverage thanks to the beer and wine license) at Boxcar - a French inspired bistro. The new restaurant will play off of the location and history of the area - think sawmills and old trains. An article in The Missoulian quotes restaurant manager Ben Burda: "The backbone influence will be a throwback to where the mill boss would want to visit on a date night in the '20s when this place was active and hoppin' like it used to be. We want to give it that 'Roaring '20s' vibe. We'll have a strong French wine program and a French beer program and then from there branch down to more relevant to now, so not stodgy French."

Dog & Bicycle has actually been working off of a limited menu for a couple of months as the kitchen has been remodeled and will serve both Dog & Bicycle and Boxcar. Another cool thing is the beer and wine license will open up Dog & Bicycle to serve alcohol for lunch.

Boxcar will seat about 45 people, feature some outdoor seating, and they hope to open on May 4th. They're located at 875 Wyoming St.