Perso in Louisville features surprise dishes, new secret garden bar
Perso in Shelby Park features a chef’s table, a family style dining experience with surprise dishes. See what we tried.
- Chef Emil David will open a new Filipino restaurant, Maynila, in the former Come Back Inn space in Louisville.
- David, known for his Italian and European cuisine at Perso, aims to share his Filipino heritage with the city.
- The restaurant is expected to open in late 2025 or early 2026.
After nearly two years of sitting vacant, 909 Swan St. will soon open its doors and again meet patrons with the wafting scent of something cooking.
A new restaurant from Louisville-based chef Emil David will take over the former space of Come Back Inn, a beloved Italian American pub that closed in Oct. 2023 after two decades in business.
The new Filipino restaurant, Maynila, will draw from David’s background growing up in the Philippines.
“Ever since I came here, people have asked when I’m doing a Filipino restaurant,” David told the Courier Journal. “The goal is to share my heritage with the city.”
David has become known for other types of cuisines, mainly the Italian and European fare now served at Perso, 741 E. Oak St., and for opening several concepts in the Louisville area since 2021.
He moved to Kentucky, where his wife is from, after stints working in Aspen, Colorado, and New York City. In 2019, he and his wife launched the Hot Buns food truck and later opened Square Cut, a popular pizza restaurant.
Over the past couple years, things have gotten even busier for David.
He rebranded Square Cut to Perso, which is more of a fine-dining destination. In late 2024, he expanded Perso’s backyard patio into a speakeasy-esque garden bar called Segreto. Around the same time, he acquired Ciao Ristorante, 1201 Payne St., and revamped the menu. He also got the keys to 909 Swan St.
As a self-funded chef and operator, David said he had to focus on one project at a time. That meant putting the Filipino restaurant on the backburner.
Until now.
David has already “invested a good chunk” into the century-old building in Germantown, he said.
He plans to renovate here and there, while keeping some of the character of what Come Back Inn patrons might recall.
“It is kind of scary because everybody knows that place,” David said, adding he’s heard a lot of interest about what’s going on in the building.
Finally, he can share some answers.
David expects to open Maynila by late 2025 or early 2026.
As far as the vibe of the restaurant, he says it’ll be “50/50” between casual and upscale and “more approachable” than Perso.
For the menu, patrons can expect Filipino-style tapas, or small plates, and a menu that leads with a sharable dining approach.
“We’re trying to do another neighborhood restaurant,” David said.
And this one might feel closer to home.
“I’ve never done Filipino food professionally and I grew up eating it,” David said.
Whenever the chef returns home, he and his family members share some friendly competition on who can make better Filipino food.
“It’s kind of like a challenge,” he said. “Maybe I can prove to my family, like, ‘Hey, I can cook Filipino food, too.’ This is my chance.”
He also envisions Maynila as a place high with energy and hospitality, inspired by the kind of gatherings he grew up attending.
He teases the fun this way: “If you ever get invited to a Filipino party, I strongly recommend you drop whatever you were doing and you go.”
And those gatherings revolve around a “strong culture of eating.”
When Maynila opens, patrons will get a taste of the party. Unlike Perso, which has become known as a spot you save for date nights or make reservations a month in advance, David hopes Maynila feeds the spur-of-the-moment crowd.
“It’s not necessarily something you have to plan for,” he said. “I want it to be like, tonight we’re having dinner. Let’s go have Filipino food. And let’s have fun.”
Reach food and dining reporter Amanda Hancock at ahancock@courier-journal.com.
