A rendering of the planned second phase of Riverfront Plaza, showing a beer garden and restaurant. | City of Jacksonville/Perkins & Will
Published on July 6, 2026 at 5:39 pm
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European Street Cafe has been selected to operate a café at Downtown Jacksonville’s new Riverfront Plaza.
European Street will open the cafe in the plaza’s second phase, which is under construction.
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The restaurant already operates cafés in San Marco, Riverside and Jacksonville Beach. The business began in 1980 after the Zarka family took over a popular German restaurant at Regency Square Mall.
Owner Andy Zarka says he is looking forward to opening his newest café in a park site formerly occupied by the Jacksonville Landing, where he said he spent many hours with family before it was torn down in early 2020.
“I loved spending time there, enjoying a meal while looking out over the St. Johns River,” Zarka said in an announcement from the city about the new café. “To now have the opportunity to help create those same kinds of memories for future generations at Riverfront Plaza is something I’ll never take for granted. I’m honored, humbled and grateful that the City has entrusted European Street Cafe with this opportunity.”
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Mayor Donna Deegan said Riverfront Plaza is becoming a place where Jacksonville comes together.
“European Street Café has been part of Jacksonville’s story for decades, and we’re excited to welcome them to the riverfront as they help create a vibrant gathering place for residents and visitors alike,” she said in the announcement. “Their commitment to hospitality and community makes them an outstanding fit for this exciting new chapter in Downtown Jacksonville.”
Riverfront Plaza is the first in a series of parks and other amenities planned for Downtown’s St. Johns Riverfront on land once occupied by the former courthouse, City Hall, jail and the Jacksonville Landing.
The plaza’s western half focuses on the Northbank Riverwalk, with curving walkways, native plant gardens in a large greenspace and a cafe space with a playground on top of it. That first phase cost $33 million, city officials said.
The second phase will have winding pathways, a water feature, and a bicycle and pedestrian connection to the Main Street Bridge. It is estimated to cost $46 million.
Zarka was one of many people who dropped in on an open house May 13 at the park to look at illustrations of the second phase. At the time, he called the plaza’s planned café space “appealing,” and told Jacksonville Today that he was interested to see what happens as the riverfront gets activated again.
“It’s been way too long since we could do that,” Zarka said in May. “I miss those days. I was talking to some people about what used to be here with the Jacksonville Landing and how much I missed sitting with a cold beer and watching the dolphins go by.”
European Street Café was selected in a public and competitive process and should open by late fall, city officials said.
