New location and look for the Zodiac

News

Staff Writer

Jerry Ewais opened Zodiac Grill in February 2000 at 128 W. Adams St. A few years later, the menu based on breakfast and a Mediterranean lunch buffet had developed such a following that he had to move next door to a larger space at Duval and Hogan streets.

Last week, Ewais opened the doors to his new Zodiac Bar and Grill, again a short move to the first floor of the Schultz Building at 118 W. Adams St.

“I started with 60 seats then expanded to 100 seats and now I have 150 seats,” he said.

The new restaurant has a different look with a more cosmopolitan decor of soft recessed lighting and dark wood tables and chairs.

“My wife, Lucy, did the interior design and I think she did a great job. As soon as she saw the space, she started coming up with ideas about how she wanted the new Zodiac to look,” said Ewais.

More seating isn’t the only addition in the new restaurant. There’s also a bar and lounge, furnished with high-top tables and leather sofas, with a window that looks out onto the street. Ewais anticipates a full liquor license and plans to replace the window with doors that will allow the lounge to remain open in the evenings after the office building is closed for the night.

That will allow the Zodiac to have a daily happy hour and be open for dinner, a few nights at first then more as demand increases, he added.

Ewais also expanded the menu with several low-carbohydrate choices and some All-American items, such as chicken wings. On the Mediterranean side, there are new lamb and chicken kabobs.

One offering that hasn’t changed is the lunch buffet. It didn’t take the Zodiac’s customers long to find the new location. By the end of the first week, the restaurant had people lined up at the buffet by 12:15 p.m. every day.

Ewais said he’s making plans for the Jacksonville Jazz Festival, which will be two blocks from the Zodiac at Hemming Plaza and along Monroe Street. He’s booking live bands again this year and will be open all day and into the evening to serve festival-goers.

“It’s great that the Jazz Festival moved Downtown from Metropolitan Park. Now it’s close to the businesses,” said Ewais.

He’s also a Downtown booster and said he would never consider moving the Zodiac to the suburbs.

“We live near UNF, but I’m here every day from early in the morning until late at night. It’s good to be a small business Downtown,” said Ewais. “The thing I like best is the variety of people from all over the U.S. and the world.”