Upscale restaurant set to open in Overton Square in the fall

The restaurateurs behind two of TripAdvisor's "Best Fine Dining Restaurants in the United States" are preparing to open their third Memphis-area concept.

Russ Graham and Tom Powers, the duo behind Downtown's Flight Restaurant & Bar and Germantown's Southern Social, plan to open the much-anticipated Porch & Parlor restaurant this fall in Overton Square. The restaurant will take over the space formerly held by Bar Louie, at 2125 Madison Ave. at the corner of Madison and South Cooper Street.

The restaurant is currently under construction, as is the menu.

Read more in the Memphis Business Journal

Wiseacre, Binghampton Gateway, High Point, Porch & Parlor dominate BRED's retail/restaurant category

MBJ's inaugural Best Real Estate Deals event was held April 25 at the Cadre Building. Below are the 2019 finalists for the BRED awards in the retail/restaurant category.

Flight owners take Overton Square corner

After the legalization of liquor-by-the-drink in 1969, a group of young developers created a bustling Midtown hangout known as Overton Square.

For more than a decade, Overton Square was renowned for its entertainment, and nightlife. But, after ownership changes and decades of decline that started in the 1980s, Overton Square was all but abandoned. Cue Memphian brothers Bob and Louis Loeb of Loeb Properties Inc., who purchased the development in 2012.

Read more in the Memphis Business Journal

Three new cajun seafood restaurants on the way to Bartlett, Memphis, and Cordova

Owners of a new cajun seafood restaurant are looking to open three Memphis area locations this year.

Brothers Joe and Ryan Ng plan to open Red Hook Cajun Seafood & Bar restaurants in Bartlett, Memphis, and Cordova.

The siblings are also majority owners in their family business, which includes 10 Asian-style buffet restaurants across the Memphis area, including the Urban Fusion Asian Bistro in Germantown and the Grand Pacific Buffet in Bartlett.

“The family are seasoned veterans in the restaurant industry in the Memphis area,” company spokesman Daniel Ellington said. “They’re of Asian descent, but they were able to learn quickly about what American people want and have come to enjoy.”

Read more in the Memphis Business Journal

Siblings prepare Asian restaurant for spring opening in Germantown

Siblings with decades of experience in the local restaurant industry are preparing to open their first eatery together at a shopping center in Germantown.

Cathy Hsu, Jeffrey Hsu, and Linda Wang expect to open the Asian-cuisine restaurant East Meet West at the end of April. The spot will be located at 7867 Farmington Road in the Farmington Centre shopping center, between Van's Alterations and Jazzercise Fitness Center.

“We thought it was the right time to open a restaurant together,” said Cathy Hsu, who will serve as the restaurant's manager.

Renovations are underway for the 1,800-square-foot space, which will seat 50 people in the dining area.

Read more in the Memphis Business Journal

Yoga instructor starts anew with Chickasaw Gardens studio

In the haste to open her very own studio during the busy holiday season, yoga instructor Yolandrea Clark had to handle a lot of details.

She found her building in the Chickasaw Gardens neighborhood at the end of November, signed her lease on Dec. 10, and was up and running on New Year's Day. Between setting up an online registration system, handling code enforcement, securing equipment, and even attending jury duty, she toiled over one of the last features of her studio to fall into place.

Clark really wanted a specific kind of flooring.

“I wanted rubber floors, because I have people with joint replacements. It’s much easier on them,” she said.

Read more in The Daily Memphian

Collierville chiropractor opening East Memphis office

A Collierville chiropractor is opening a second office location in East Memphis.

The Chiro Place, a family-based chiropractic practice that serves all ages, is opening its second office at 3179 Poplar Ave., across from East High School.

Owned and operated by Dr. Dena Granger, The Chiro Place is leasing a 1,500-square-foot space in Loeb Properties’ Shops of Chickasaw Gardens.

"Currently, with us being in Collierville we have a lot of patients who commute from the Memphis area," Granger said. "We were looking for a good, neutral spot to serve more of the Memphis community." 

Read more in The Daily Memphian

Korean restaurant opening near U of M

A local, family-owned restaurant is set to open its third location near the University of Memphis.

Du and Won Lee opened their first Korean restaurant in 2002, at South Mendenhall Road's intersection with Winchester Road, offering very traditional food and serving a primarily Korean clientele.

The Lees sons, Jun and Hwan, then took the reins in 2010. They renamed it DWJ and moved east, to 3750 Hacks Cross Road. Making the restaurant more accessible to a wider audience, the brothers found enough success at the new location to open a second location in Cooper Young two years ago. There, they've seen business boom.

Read more in the Memphis Business Journal

Loeb Plans to Demolish, Redevelop Poplar Avenue Property

Loeb Properties Inc. is preparing to demolish the pair of office buildings at 5575 Poplar Ave.

The prominent real estate company recently sent tenants of Executive Square a letter telling them that a demolition is being planned for the pair of 1973 office buildings and that they will be replaced with a new development Loeb is involved in.

Ciara Neill, Loeb's spokeswoman, confirmed the plans Tuesday and said the company is working with "a lead candidate" on the "major redevelopment."

"We're very pleased with the interest we've been getting from prospective users," Neill said.

Read more in the Memphis Business Journal

Renovated Donut Shop Rounds Into Shape

An incoming donut shop seems poised to add to the city’s whimsical, kitsch architecture and signage, in the tradition of the rotating Sputnik at Joe’s Wines & Liquor, the flashing neon at Gibson's Donuts and the long-gone Pop Tunes dancing neon musical notes.

The future shop at 1776 Union Ave. features a corner patio so round that it mimics the donuts to be made and sold inside.

In case there’s any doubt about the circular symbolism, a giant donut-shaped sign will be installed atop the patio, according to an architectural rendering provided by landlord Loeb Properties.

Read more in the Daily Memphian

New York Transplant Opens Local Pizzeria

One day in the early 1990s, the owner of a small, Long Island pizzeria was left shorthanded by a quarrel between his two sons. He turned to the dishwasher, Jose Granados, and told him he was going to learn how to make pizza that day.

Ever since, Granados has been making pizza off-and-on and saving up money to open his own place.

On Monday, the 43-year-old is set to achieve his long-held goal, with the opening of New York Style Pizzeria in Collierville.

Read More in the Memphis Business Journal

ErinWay Shopping Center to Undergo Renovation

A shopping center in the heart of East Memphis will soon undergo a renovation.

Loeb Properties this week applied to do work on its ErinWay Center at 4870 Poplar. The document estimates the first phase of work will cost about $750,000.

The J-shaped center anchored by Huey’s occupies 4.1 acres with 44,487 square feet of commercial space and parking.

The strip center is bordered by Poplar to the south, St. Nick on the west and Erin Drive on the east.

“We'll be making some cosmetic and construction adjustments to this plan as we work our way around the building, and are staging the renovation in phases to work around the busy holiday shopping season,’’ Loeb Properties spokeswoman Ciara Neill said in an email to The Daily Memphian.

“In the first phase, which is just about to kick off, we'll be renovating the western side of the building around Sakura Japanese Restaurant and the European Wax Center,’’ she said. “We're currently exploring the addition of a fun splash of color on that wing of the building through an artistic installation facing St. Nick Street, and after the holidays will pick back up with construction on the south and east facades of the shopping center.’’

Read more in the Daily Memphian

Open Flame Opens in Highland Neighborhood

Loeb Properties is pleased to announce the opening of Open Flame restaurant at University Center. Located at 3445 Poplar Avenue at Highland Street, Open Flame is the new location and name for the popular Kebob International restaurant, formerly of Cordova.

Owners Sharzad and Mansour Ashrafieh are renowned in Memphis for their authentic signature Persian and Mediterranean dishes, specializing in shish kabob, kosher, and halal fare. The Ashrafieh's famous hospitality extends to evening events including belly dancing; catering and group events are available upon request.

Read more in the Memphis Flyer

Porch & Parlor Plans Lush Interior and Early 2019 Opening

The opening of Porch & Parlor in the former Bar Louie spot in Overton Square has been pushed back a bit, from late 2018 to early 2019.

In May, Russ Graham and Tom Powers announced they leased the space and would open Porch & Parlor, making it the third in the local restaurant portfolio that includes Flight and Southern Social. The plan was always to offer upscale dining, but researching the building’s history led them to reconsider the interior design.

“We’re embracing when the building was built, which was during the Belle Epoque era,” Graham said.

The era, which encompassed the Gilded Age in the U.S., was a time of prosperity for many around the world, a time when the wealthy spent exorbitantly and the extravagant Art Nouveau style was in demand. The lavish look will figure in the design of the new restaurant.

Read more in the Daily Memphian

New Gym Opening In East Memphis

SHED Fitness has signed a lease to occupy 4,055 square feet at 1215 Ridgeway Road.

Marcus Esposito and Maureen Shorter Esposito, the local franchise owners, are currently building out their Park Place location, which is expected to open in August.

In the deal, landlord Loeb Properties Inc. was represented by vice president of brokerage Aaron Petree.

At SHED Fitness, participants are led through 3 to 5 stations of moderate to high intensity exercises for a total class time of 50 minutes. Private classes are also available.

Read more in the Memphis Daily News

Helping Hands

Most mornings it’s not uncommon to see dozens of homeless Memphians lined up outside Hospitality Hub’s Downtown location, hoping to get selected for the nonprofit’s Work Local program, which offers $50 and a meal in exchange for five hours of work cleaning up around the city.

Unfortunately, due to budget constraints, only 10 people can be selected per day, said Keynnon Mumphrey, director of the Work Local program.

But thanks to a new partnership with the University Neighborhoods Development Corporation that adds an extra day to the program, 10 more homeless people a week will get the opportunity to earn a hot meal and a paycheck. Mumphrey said that money potentially could pay for up to half a month at the mission.

Read more in the Memphis Daily News