Is The Divine Swine closing? What’s on the menu at new Modesto restaurant in Roseburg Square

Restaurants in Modesto always are coming and going. But one in Roseburg Square is both going (as we know it) and coming back.

George Bertaina, Alicia Zabala, Tad Wood and Gracey Wood bought The Divine Swine in October, renovated the building and changed the restaurant’s name.

They were on the fence about rebranding because The Divine Swine had a loyal following, and they also wanted to maintain the previous owner’s vision.

“As we got into it, we started doing surveys and interviews in a local neighborhood and it was overwhelming that people were craving change,” Bertaina said. “But we didn’t want to alienate that customer base that had that loyal following.”

What they landed on is called Cora at Roseburg Square. Cora and The Divine Swine will act as two businesses under one roof.

“We’re focusing on Cora and giving it some time before we relaunch The Divine Swine,” Bertaina said. The plan is to open Cora in early May and relaunch The Divine Swine in the summer.

The Divine Swine brand will focus primarily on catering and events, but Bertaina said the owners also anticipate putting in a service window on the restaurant’s side that is near the Virginia Corridor walking/biking trail. The idea is that people coming off the trail — and other customers — can order Divine Swine menu items, like traditional barbecue and ice cream, that can be enjoyed outdoors.

“It’s tight out there and people are being more selective about where they’re spending their money — and we appreciate that,” Bertaina said. “So even though it’s casual, we’re offering professional service with integrity.”

The restaurant has a dog-friendly patio and will serve house-made dog biscuits.

There’s a full bar, which will have craft cocktails with and without alcohol. Coffee cocktails will be served in the morning and there will be 12 beers on tap.

Cora will be open Tuesdays through Thursdays from 7 a.m. to 9p.m, Fridays and Saturdays from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Sundays from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. It will be closed to the public on Mondays but available for private parties.

In the back of the restaurant, down a hallway from the main floor, is a private banquet room with a bar. The room seats around 30 people and can be reserved for special events, meetings and gatherings.

What’s on the menus at Cora and The Divine Swine?

Bertaina, who serves as the the head chef of both businesses, was the culinary division director for the Institute of Technology’s culinary arts program — where he met Zabala.

“We’re a huge blended family between Alicia and I,” Bertaina said. Menu items will have Spanish, Filipino, Italian, Swedish and Portuguese influence.

They will serve breakfast, lunch and dinner. Everything will be made from scratch in house.

“The microwave is for melting butter and that’s it,” Bertaina said. “And reheating my coffee sometimes.”

The signature dish on Cora’s main menu will be paella, a Spanish rice dish. The breakfast signature will be Dutch babies, which are a take on a pancake that are typically baked in an oven.

Small plates will be offered, from elote-style hush puppies to lumpia to empanadas.

Classic Americana dishes also will be served, including chicken and dumplings, biscuits and gravy and meatloaf.

“We want to bring our family favorites but also make (customers) where they’re comfortable,” Bertaina said.

He most recently worked at Prestige Senior Living, where he did menu planning around dietary restrictions like dysphagia and diabetes. Bertaina said he plans to incorporate menu items that are friendly toward those with dietary restrictions.

They’ll have rotating, slow-cooked items on different days of the week. “Think what Grandma used to make that took all day, and you try to go get it at a restaurant but it’s never good because they’re making it in the minute,” Bertaina said.

Family meals can be ordered to go or enjoyed at the restaurant.

“Any chance we get to bring families together or be included in our family, that’s what we want to do.”

The kitchen is divided into two sections, one that services Cora and one that will be used to prepare The Divine Swine menu items.

The Divine Swine menu will be traditional barbecue like pulled pork, slowly smoked beef brisket, and house-made sausage. Side dishes will include macaroni and cheese, potato salad, ranch beans and corn on the cob.

The family (Gracey Wood is Zabala’s aunt and Tad Wood is Gracey’s husband) purchased The Divine Swine recipes with the restaurant. So, yes, you still can order chimichurri fries and expect them to be the same, Bertaina said.

He said they’ll not start with the full menus for either restaurant right away, to give the staff time to acclimate and learn to make everything properly.

“That just goes back to money being tight for a lot of people,” George said. “The last thing we want is people to come in and be unhappy with what they’re purchasing.”

Restaurant’s namesake awarded Medal of Freedom for food service

Cora is the epitome of a family restaurant. Not only is it owned by four family members, but the restaurant’s name, menu and mission are inspired by their ancestors and traditions.

The restaurant is named after Bertaina’s grandmother, Paulina Corazon Delavaca-Ramirez, who was nicknamed Cora.

“We had a really large family, so there was always conflicting personalities, but she was always successful at bringing everybody together at the dinner table,” Bertaina said.

Delavaca-Ramirez was 16 when she and her family opened a restaurant in Pasay, in the Philippines, called Cora’s Stand. It catered to military personnel in the pre-World War II era.

There, Delavaca-Ramirez met a soldier, George Nord, whom she dated until he went to war. Nord was captured, endured the Bataan Death March and was a prisoner of war for four years.

Though their restaurant and their home were destroyed in the war, Delavaca-Ramirez and her family supplied food to neighbors, church members and POW camps. They were awarded the Medal of Freedom by the U.S. government.