Country chef Geoffrey Zakarian, who gave the restaurant an Haute Barnyard makeover earlier this year, will rebrand the upper floor as Country Steak. “I've been trying to do a steakhouse concept for a while,” says Zakarian. “I was looking for a location, and we're already doing a lot of head-to-tail cooking at Country. So we're just going to do it here. I'm installing a wood grill, and we're going to open after our usual summer hiatus in September.” The meat program isn't final, but the focus will be on the smoky flavor imparted by wood embers. “We're still looking at different woods, different methods,” says the chef. (We'd go with Brandt beef and a combination of oak and hickory — but that's just us.) Country's current multicourse menu will continue throughout the summer. Country Steak will open on October 1.

Earlier: New Country Chef to Implement Haute Barnyard Makeover

On the heels of naming Willis Loughhead chef, Geoffrey Zakarian’s flagship, Country , has a new wine director, William Rhodes. Rhodes, formerly of the Carlyle and Per Se, is an intense young man who looks like Clark Kent and has all the assurance of a dean of students. He plans to expand Country's wine program, as well as develop a cocktail list based on seasonal ingredients, according to a press release. Let's hope there are a few affordable bottles on the list when he's done, so appreciating it won't be wholly an intellectual undertaking.

Related: New Country Chef to Implement Haute-Barnyard Makeover

“We've changed everything,” says Willis Loughhead, the new chef at Country. Working closely with Geoffry Zakarian, Loughhead is implementing a sprightly, Haute Barnyard–ish menu that should help to rejuvenate the restaurant's somewhat stodgy reputation. “My style is characterized by a lot of olive oil, vinegar, fresh lemon — a lot of brightness.” The new menu, rolling out this week, will include a soft-shell crab with pea greens, pea shoots, and pea tendrils and a pistachio-yuzu vinaigrette; a seared bison tenderloin with white and green asparagus and purple baby artichokes; and a full-bone, dry-aged Nebraska prime rib for two. “We're doing everything differently now,” Loughhead says. “We're breaking down whole animals, making our own charcuterie.… And now that the Greenmarket is about to explode, you're going to see so much from us based on that. It's going to be very market-driven. Right now, I'm waiting for ramps, for instance. Just wait till they come in.” We'll settle for the crabs and steak.