The mission is simple: Eat food, good food. Drink drinks, good drinks.

The latest addition to the emerging Arts & Cultural District is Saison, a newly opened Jackson Ward restaurant that pays homage to locally grown and seasonal eats. Boasting re-imagined Southern favorites, Saison isn’t afraid to give a nod to spice and flavor from down by the equator. The result is a menu serving Latin inflections of Southern cuisine and Richmond’s most varied, nuanced beverages.

Co-Founders Jay Bayer and Adam Hall, who naturally have a deep knowledge and love of beer from their decade at Richmond mainstay Capital Ale House, say that Saison will be one of the first spots in the U.S. with a beer program helmed by both a Siebel Institute-certified brewer and a Certified Cicerone.

“Adam and I fleshed out the Saison idea over many homebrew sessions,” says Bayer. “We are passionate about food, drink, service, and atmosphere. We want to deliver a memorable experience.”

Leading up the beverage director spot is Chris Elford, who has traveled the NYC cocktail circuit at establishments including Amor Y Amargo, El Cobre, Gin Palace and beer mecca Proletariat. Elford’s goal is to bring the spirit of the NYC bar community to RVA as career drink slingers collaborate to bring new and exciting cocktails to a discerning crowd. As a result, the drink menu at Saison spans everything from the “Jackson Ward” (a bitter Bourbon Manhattan subbing a portion of Sweet Vermouth out for bitter and minty Nardini Amaro, with Wormwood and Orange Bitters) to the “Byrd Park Swizzle” (swizzled in true Tiki fashion, made with Nicaraguan and Martinique rhum, Aperol, Yellow Chartreuse, Clement Creole Shrubb, fresh lime, absinthe, Tiki Bitters, Peychaud’s Bitters, and Chinese 5-Spice).

Saison, located in the space formerly occupied by Marshall Street Caf?, features high ceilings and the photojournalistic work of Patrick Moran, and seats 40. In the basement the owners are cultivating a “grow room” to produce herbs for use in the bar and kitchen.