Maple Street Biscuit Co., the Southern comfort food with a modern twist restaurant formed five years ago, has set up a corporate headquarters.
Jacksonville-based Maple Street has moved onto the top floor of the four-story Level Office co-work and office suites building at 25 N. Market St. Downtown.
That’s after it leased temporary space in the building for a few months.
“This was the place because we found lots of different traditional office spaces that we could get, but we felt like that was the past. This is about where we’re going, not where we’ve been,” said co-founder Scott Moore.
Level Office offers flexible space targeting startups, co-work tenants and other small businesses. The building formerly was used by the 4th Judicial Circuit Public Defender’s Office, which has moved, and was purchased and transformed into professional office space last year.
Moore said the company, now with nine Maple Street and three B Street Eats locations, had operated out of an office in the back of its Edgewood Avenue restaurant.
The coziness was replicated at Level Office.
The team of eight chose to work out of one office, leaving the other two for training and for a telephone room for those who need privacy.
“You’re going to see everybody’s desk there in that corner room. We’re all in it together,” Moore said.
There’s also a larger community space with a break area in the total 1,400-square-foot space.
Moore, who started Maple Street with business partner Gus Evans, said the layout maintains an interesting dynamic.
“It does mean we all have a real clear vision of where we’re going. Everybody really feels like they’re in the inside,” Moore said.
He said meetings are easy – you pull your chair to the other’s desk.
Moore said he gave the team the option of using the other two offices. “They were like, ‘no. We like being together.’”
Moore said when he and Evans launched the company, opening the San Marco store in November 2012, they were going to hire three people.
“Three people. That was it. I knew we could cover the payroll for three people,” he said.
That has grown to 200 employees. The company has nine Maple Street Biscuit Co. restaurants in San Marco, Murray Hill, Julington Creek, Fleming Island, Jacksonville Beach, St. Augustine, Gainesville, Tallahassee and Chattanooga, Tenn. A 10th is scheduled to open in the Killearn area of North Tallahassee.
It also has two of the new-concept casual Latin and South American eateries called B Street Eats in Murray Hill and in St. Augustine, although that one is only patio dining.
“B” stands for “best,” he said, as in best-inspired flavors from the culture.
The biscuit restaurants are open 7 a.m.-2 p.m. Monday-Thursday and 7 a.m.-3 p.m. Friday-Saturday. They are closed Sunday.
B Street is open 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Monday-Saturday and also serves craft beer, wine and fresh sangria. It also serves flavored agua fresca — fresh water.
The headquarters offers the shared services administrative support for the stores so that the restaurants’ managers – called community leaders – can be “all there” and greet customers and work with the team.
“I don’t want them to be tempted to set up a computer and have to work. They should be on the floor, talking to their guests,” he said.
Moore said he wants to make it easy for them to do that, and not paperwork.
“We needed space because our job is to do all that stuff for them,” he said.
Maple Street didn’t have an office until just over a year ago, he said, and that was because one was available in the back of the Murray Hill location.
“We didn’t know what to do with it so we put a couple of desks in there,” he said.
Moore said the Level Office space also presents a sense of community.
“Since our mission is to help people, serve others and be part of the community, we love that,” he said.
“There are all these other entrepreneurs, startups and small businesses that are here and we’ve gotten to know all of them,” he said.
“It just fit.”
Publix to remodel along San Jose
Publix Super Markets Inc. continues to remodel its area grocery stores.
Plans were submitted to the city for a $950,000 renovation of its 10500 San Jose Blvd. store in the Courtyard Shopping Center.
Elkins Construction LLC is the contractor for the almost 62,200-square-foot project. Property records show the store was built in 1988.
Lakeland-based Publix has submitted plans or completed renovations or reconstruction for at least 20 area stores in recent years.
Food notes
• Rue Saint Marc applied for a Certificate of Use for its San Marco restaurant at 2107 Hendricks Ave. It’s a 2,600-square-foot space.
• Wendy’s is working toward a location in OakLeaf Town Center. The 3,500-square-foot, 84-seat restaurant is planned on almost an acre at 9510 Applecross Road.
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