by J. Brooks Terry
Staff Writer
Encountering minor setbacks and a temporary construction halt last month, partners behind the Burrito Gallery on East Adams Street said they still plan to open the restaurant by November.
“It’s looking good,” said developer Tony Allegretti, “but we’re having a little bit of an issue with the people from Building Code Adjustment.”
Allegretti, also a principle partner in Venture Resources, said the BCA wants him and partner Paul Shockey to “install a grease pit the size of a swimming pool behind the restaurant.”
“That doesn’t really fit in with what we’ve already planned for,” he said. “However, we’ve looked into previous situations that other restaurants have had and I think we’ll be able to solve this issue and continue to move forward. We’re confident we will.”
Once work resumes, Allegretti said the Guatemalan-themed restaurant will “add something unique, not only to downtown, but to the entire city.”
“We’re calling it Guatemamerican,” he said, “and I’m telling you, you won’t find anything else like it anywhere around here.”
Allegretti, who’s also working with partners based in Delray Beach, said the 75-seat restaurant will feature “unique ingredients combined with fresh produce.”
“I don’t want to give too much away,” he said, “but we’re going to be shopping for produce every morning. We’re really trying to focus on serving authentic Latin-American fare and that’s part of it.”
Focusing on lunch, upcoming menu items will include hand-rolled burritos, homemade soups and various salads. Patio seating will also be available.
“We’re going to be building a 3,000 square-foot deck that’s going to be awesome,” said Allegretti. “It’s going to provide a great view and add an entirely new element to downtown that we don’t really have now.”
A second floor upscale restaurant is also being developed.
“Our partners from Delray specialize in fine dining so they should be able to do great things there,” said Allegretti. “It’s going to be much more formal than the Burrito Gallery.”
Work on that project won’t begin for several months.
“Not any time soon,” said Allegretti. “We’re keeping it open so that it will be available during the Super Bowl for parties and things like that.”