Published on October 31, 2023 at 8:41 pm
Downtown’s culinary scene continues to grow. Here are five restaurant concepts headed to Jacksonville’s central business district.
1. Alder & Oak
400 Riverside Ave.
Southern Grounds Coffee chain owner Mark Janasik plans to open a separate concept, Alder & Oak, as a part of The Hub Brooklyn project located at 400 Riverside Ave. in Brooklyn. Alder & Oak will be a full-service dining venue that will offer local and coastal inspired wood-fired cuisine and Prohibition-style cocktails. The Hub Brooklyn is a $2.46 million project under development at the intersection of Riverside Avenue and Forest Street. Alder & Oak will occupy approximately 2,600 square feet of interior dining space and 3,220 square feet of covered open-air dining.
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2. Southern Grounds & Co.
400 Riverside Ave.
In addition to the Alder & Oak restaurant and bar, Mark Janasik plans to open a new Southern Grounds coffee shop as a part of The Hub Brooklyn project. Southern Grounds will occupy 3,415 square feet of space with its coffee shop, bakery and fast-casual restaurant in the development that has recently broken ground on construction.
3. Bold City Brewery
618 W. Forsyth St.
A two-story Daily’s gas station with a Bold City Brewery and restaurant is planned for Downtown’s LaVilla neighborhood. Bold City Brewery will operate a microbrewery and restaurant on top of the Daily’s convenience store. The project also will include a rooftop bar. Owned and operated by Brian Miller and his mother, Susan, Bold City Brewery was founded in 2008. Bold City already operates a microbrewery and taproom in Riverside and a smaller Downtown location on East Bay Street. The Bay Street location will relocate to the Daily’s gas station planned for a 1.4-acre block at the intersection of Bay and Broad streets.
4. Cinco de Mayo
301 E. Bay St.
Rodolfo and Maria Torres-Leon intend to open their 9th Cinco de Mayo location at 301 E. Bay St. The first Cinco de Mayo opened at the Jacksonville Landing in 2007 and was forced to close when the city acquired the shopping center and evicted nearly 30 small businesses in order to demolish the festival marketplace in 2020. To ensure they have more control over their business investment, the owners have purchased the former Olio restaurant space on the first floor of the J.H. Churchwell Lofts building. Offering a large selection of Mexican food, the restaurant will feature a full bar and will be open 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 11 a.m. to 11 p.m on Friday and Saturday. They also expect to hire 15 to 20 people for the new Downtown restaurant, which should be open by the end of the year.
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5. The Co-op Frosé & Eatery
218 W. Church St.
South Carolina-based Co-op Frosé & Eatery will be opening its first Florida location in the recently renovated First Baptist Church Convention Building at 218 W. Church St. The restaurant will take up a 2,000-square-foot space and nearly 1,500 square feet of adjacent patio space. Co-op Frosé & Eatery, which specializes in rosé wine slushies, creative sandwiches, bagels and toasts, was founded in 2012 by Jess Patterson on Sullivan’s Island, S.C. The Co-op also has locations in North Carolina, Tennessee and Nevada.
