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A couple with experience at the Bay Area’s top Michelin-star restaurants is opening their first restaurant in Carmel-by the Sea, part of a dining boom in the scenic seaside town

Chez Noir, from husband and wife Jonny and Monique Black, will start serving dinner on Friday, Oct. 7, at Fifth Avenue between Dolores and San Carlos streets. Chez Noir is quite literally the Blacks’ home: The couple and their young children live above the restaurant, located on the first floor of a craftsman-style house blocks from the beach. 

The upscale restaurant is distinctly of the coastal region that the owners call home. Abalone from Monterey Bay, figs and peppers from just inland at Borba Farms and cheese from Salinas dairy farm Schoch Family Farm grace the menu, which will change frequently depending on what’s available. Seafood, of course, abounds: chilled oysters with passion fruit, house-made spaghetti with uni and ling cod served with cult favorite Rancho Gordo beans.  

There’s lots of Spanish influence at Chez Noir, from a classic tortilla española topped with local seafood to Mangalica jamon, a prized cured ham, served with bread and tomatoes. All pasta, charcuterie, dry-aged fish and meats, and even vermouth are made by the restaurant.

Monique Black said in a previous interview that they want Chez Noir to straddle the line between high-end and approachable — “to feel fancy and special but no fuss.” Most dishes fall in the $18 to $40 range, though large, shareable entrees like a whole grilled trout ($64) and aged beef ($125) are more expensive. Any dish can get a dollop of proprietary caviar the Blacks made with the California Caviar Co. for an extra $28 or $35.

Jonny Black has worked at some of world’s most acclaimed fine-dining restaurants, including as a cook at Thomas Keller’s Per Se in New York, chef de cuisine at the three-Michelin-starred Quince in San Francisco and as Dominique Crenn’s first executive chef, overseeing all of her San Francisco restaurants. Monique Black previously worked front-of-house positions at Quince and Coi in San Francisco.

The drinks menu is also hyperlocal, with natural wines from Santa Cruz and Monterey vintners and beer from Pescadero, Seaside (Monterey County) and Capitola (Santa Cruz County) breweries. Cocktails include gin washed in the Bay Area’s Other Brother olive oil, mixed with vermouth and Sherry tarragon; or amaro amped up with a pear shrub.

The 36-seat dining room is lit with antique brass lights stamped with the restaurant’s name, while a bar area has a gleaming black-and-white checkered floor and jade green tiles behind the marble bar. An outdoor patio seats 22 people, with bistro tables and chairs that evoke Paris (plus a fire pit for when the fog rolls in). Chez Noir takes both reservations and walk-ins.

Carmel appears to be experiencing a bit of a dining renaissance. In addition to Chez Noir, Foray, a fine-dining restaurant that emphasizes foraged ingredients, is opening soon, as well as a new spot from the family behind Salinas’ popular Villa Azteca. A new burger restaurant, Burger Bar, opened at Carmel Plaza this summer and tapas bar Promesa arrived in the late spring.

Chez Noir. Opening Oct. 7. 5-8:30 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday, 4-9 p.m. Friday-Saturday. Fifth Avenue between Dolores and San Carlos streets, Carmel-by-the-Sea.  cheznoircarmel.com

Elena Kadvany (she/her) is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: elena.kadvany@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @ekadvany

Elena Kadvany joined The San Francisco Chronicle as a food reporter in 2021. Previously, she was a staff writer at the Palo Alto Weekly and its sister publications, where she covered restaurants and education and also founded the Peninsula Foodist restaurant column and newsletter.