Taking a successful restaurant in Napa and trying to replicate it in Walnut Creek didn’t come without its challenges.

The owners of Bounty Hunter Wine Bar & Smokin’ BBQ in Napa found that out the hard way, as the pandemic hit just a few months after its second location opened right off Broadway Plaza.

The new restaurant, called Bounty Hunter Walnut Creek, never found its groove.

So the restaurant shut its doors last September, took a few months to strategize and then re-opened in December with a new concept, a new look, an entirely new menu and a new name: BH Wood-Fired Grill.

“We wanted to make something that would be consistent quality every time you come,” says Ryan Cole, co-founder of Hi Neighbor Hospitality Group, which was hired to help reshape the restaurant. “We don’t want to change the menu all the time. We want to change it seasonally. But we want it to be like, ‘I’m craving beef carpaccio, so I want to come in, sit at the bar, get a glass of wine, and it’s going to be the same thing every time.

“I’d rather hang my hat on consistent quality over innovation right now.”

BH Wood-Fired Grill recently debuted in the former Bounty Hunter Walnut Creek Space that had been closed since September (photo by Harry Wilson for BH Wood-Fired Grill). 

That’s the goal of the new menu, Cole said, and he expects it’ll have a much higher success rate than the previous menu, which focused on replicating the barbecue from the original Bounty Hunter in Napa.

The new menu leans into the restaurant’s wood-fired grill while aiming to hit home runs with the classics: steak and seafood.

The truffle beef carpaccio ($24) features mushrooms, chives, capers, parmesan and griddle focaccia, while the 8-ounce filet mignon ($52) and 14-ounce New York strip ($62) are simply prepared with garlic butter and a red wine bordelaise.

“People are trying so hard to push to be fine dining, and they’re doing it without the experience,” Cole said. “They’re trying to skip steps to get there. You get people with ambitious ideas and mediocre or inconsistent execution. People then go spend their money and decide, ‘You know what, that was adventurous, but I’ll never go back.’

“Most of our concepts, even 7 Adams, the least expensive Michelin-star restaurant in San Francisco, the idea is you can get quality and value, and we’ll drive repeat business.”

BH Wood-Fired Grill recently debuted in the former Bounty Hunter Walnut Creek Space that had been closed since Sept. (photo by Harry Wilson for BH Wood-Fired Grill). 

It’s hard to go wrong with wood-fired meat and seafood, and BH has paired that with a robust Napa wine list and a cocktail program that hits on classic flavor combinations.

Suzanne Miller, bar manager at The Madrigal, designed the menu, which features Judgement of Paris ($15), made with indigo gin, bianco vermouth, prosecco, plum and tomato shrub and lemon, and The Leafcutter ($15), which combines vodka, a strawberry-honey infusion, egg whites and lime juice.

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The restaurant also redesigned the interior, adding abstract artwork and a new lounge area with low tables and couches perfect to have drinks and cozy conversation.

Cole’s plea to Walnut Creek customers: Give us a chance.

“It’s well-prepared food that pairs well with wine and gives you this feel of a little bit of Napa wherever you go,” he said. “You’ll feel as confident coming to the bar for an appetizer as you are bringing the whole family with the kids for dinner.”

A daily happy hour from 4 to 6 p.m. offers $5 off all appetizers, $5 beer and $10 wine and cocktails.

Details: Open from 4 to 9 p.m. Monday-Thursday and 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday-Sunday at 1521 Mt. Diablo Blvd. in Walnut Creek; bhwoodfiredgrill.com.

BH Wood-Fired Grill recently debuted in the former Bounty Hunter Walnut Creek Space that had been closed since Sept. (photo by Harry Wilson for BH Wood-Fired Grill).