The Bearded Pig BBQ announced Wednesday it would add a second location in Jacksonville Beach by summer.
It will take over the former space of Atlantic Coast Bank at 1700 S. 3rd St., across A1A from Huguenot Park. The 6,116-square-foot space is owned by BFC Property Acquisition I LLC.
The restaurant will be similar to the restaurant’s original location in San Marco, which serves barbecue food in a fast casual setting. It will also serve beer and wine along with a full-liquor bar.
Owner Michael Schmidt said it will seat 150 both indoors and outdoors. It will have a play area for kids with turf and a chalk wall.
If approved by the Jacksonville Beach Planning Commission on Jan. 13, construction will begin shortly after with a goal of opening by that summer.
Schmidt said he had been looking for a location at the beach for a while, but had trouble finding the right place. After seeing the building on 3rd Street, he said the space and the location in the middle of the Beaches, and between Beach and Butler boulevards was ideal.
“But when the right spot comes along, its like this is the right spot,” he said. “We got into the building, looked at it, liked the location, liked the site and liked what we could do with it.”
The largest parts of the renovation would include the bathrooms, which need to be expanded, and building-out the kitchen, Schmidt said. But it would be a pretty “standard tenant fit-out when it comes to a restaurant,” he added.
In November, the restaurant announced it would move its original restaurant from 1224 Kings Ave. down the street to 1808 Kings Ave. It will retain the 1224 Kings Ave. space for a future project, which Schmidt said had been determined, but wasn’t ready to announce.
