Buffalo Wild Wings plans restaurant in The Avenues mall
Buffalo Wild Wings, which has restaurants in North Jacksonville and in Orange Park, plans to open in December in The Avenues mall in space formerly occupied by Morrison's.
Regional Marketing Manager Randy Groover, based in Atlanta, said Tuesday it will be the third company-owned location in the area.
The buffalowildwings.com site shows the existing two Buffalo Wild Wings locations in Northeast Florida are at River City Marketplace and along Wells Road in Orange Park.
Groover said two stores were closed previously in Orange Park and along Baymeadows Road.
"Florida is becoming a hotbed for company-owned restaurants," he said. Buffalo Wild Wings also plans restaurants in Flagler Beach, Gainesville and Tallahassee, among other areas.
Information submitted to the St. Johns River Water Management District shows Buffalo Wild Wings as a tenant in a space on the second level of The Avenues, between Belk and Forever 21, facing Southside Boulevard.
The space is next to the mall entrance, opposite Ruby Tuesday.
A store floor plan of the 7,000-square-foot restaurant shows 352 seats, comprising 267 inside and 58 on a patio.
Of the interior seats, 132 are in the dining area, 130 are in the bar and five are for takeout customers.
An email to the district from the project manager with Design and Engineering Inc. of Brentwood, Tenn., says the proposal is to renovate the interior space — formerly Morrison's — and exterior renovations to include patio seating.
Buffalo Wild Wings Inc. was founded in 1982 and is based in Minneapolis. It owns, operates and franchises Buffalo Wild Wings Grill & Bar restaurants "featuring a variety of boldly flavored, made-to-order menu items including its namesake
Buffalo, New York-style chicken wings," says the site.
The menu features 20 signature sauces. There are 917 Buffalo Wild Wings locations across 49 states and in Canada.
According to its annual filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the company had 32 restaurants in Florida, of which 27 are franchised and five are company-owned. It wants to open 60 company-owned and 45 franchised restaurants in 2013.
Stores also feature TVs. "We strategically place approximately 50 high-definition flat-screen monitors and up to 10 projection screens throughout the restaurant to allow for easy viewing. These televisions, combined with our sound system, Buzztime Trivia and assorted video games, provide a source of entertainment for our guests and reinforce the energetic nature of our concept," says the filing.
Newk's Eatery opens 2nd area restaurant
RestaurantNews.com reports that Newk's Eatery, described as a fresh casual restaurant concept offering made-to-order choices, opened Monday at 14964 Max Leggett Parkway, in the Parkway Shops at River City Marketplace.
It is the second Newk's restaurant in Jacksonville and the first local rebranded location, and the second in the country.
It features an updated logo and the Newk's Eatery name, replacing Newk's Express Café. The restaurant is the second of five locations set to open in Jacksonville and St. Augustine.
RestaurantNews.com reports the owners are Scott and Anne Marie Russell and Scott's parents, Terry and Linda Russell, who also own the Newk's at 9047-1 Southside Blvd.
Terry and Linda Russell were farmers in Mississippi for 45 years and Scott and Anne Marie Russell farmed for 13 years before moving to Jacksonville to open Newk's.
The report said Newk's Eatery features fresh-tossed salads, oven-baked sandwiches, California-style pizzas, made-from-scratch soups and homemade cakes baked by Newk's Bakery Co. Wines by the glass and beer also are available.
Since opening in 2004 in Oxford, Miss., Newk's Eatery has expanded to 11 states — Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Tennessee and Texas.
Newk's has 52 restaurants open, of which 45 are franchised. Five restaurants opened in 2010; 15 in 2011 and seven in 2012. Projections call for 15 restaurants to open in 2013.
World of Beer showing signs in Tinseltown
The City approved two wall signs for World of Beer at 9700 Deer Lake Court, No. 1, in the Tinseltown area.
Taylor Sign & Design Inc. is the contractor for the $4,600 project.
As reported, the World of Beer neighborhood tavern chain plans to open its first Jacksonville store in June. JCON Commercial Corp. has been granted the building permit to make the tenant improvements at a project cost of $200,000.
The World of Beer – Southside Facebook page says the business is "coming soon."
It says it is currently hiring and gives directions about applying. Its email is [email protected].