Published: Monday, December 1, 2014 at 10:58 p.m. Last Modified: Monday, December 1, 2014 at 10:58 p.m.

NEW SMYRNA BEACH With a roomful of residents watching Monday night, the citys Planning and Zoning Board unanimously denied a key request by developers of a proposed new beachfront hotel.

The developers of the planned 146-room SpringHill Suites by Marriott, planned on about a 1.5-acre site just north of the Breakers Restaurant and Lounge, had asked that the citys coastal construction setback line be moved an average of 75.5 feet to the east to allow for the construction of the hotel building, a swimming pool and a deck.

The City Commission will have the ultimate say on the request.

The request was one of three associated with the hotel and considered by the board in front of at least 200 people at the Brannon Center, with the majority attending being residents opposed to the project. Many were associated with the fast-growing New Smyrna Beach Citizens for Smart Growth, wearing red to show their solidarity and some carrying signs with the words High Density Hotel crossed out, while also declaring Stop the Madness.

Its just too big, too close and too wrong, Lillian Conrad, one of the members of the citizens group, said of the hotel.

City Planning Manager Gail Henrikson, who recommended against relocating the coastal construction setback line, said construction of habitable portions of any buildings have been prohibited east of the line since it was established in 1985.

Glenn Storch, an attorney representing the developers of the hotel, said the citys coastal construction setback line is flawed.

Taking someones rights to use their property based on a faulty line without scientific basis is arbitrary and capricious, and what that does is open yourself up to all kinds of problems, he told the board.

Henrikson said if the City Commission votes against the request to relocate the coastal construction setback line it would force developers to scale back the intensity of their development.

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NSB board turns down proposal for hotel

LAKEPORT, Calif. After months of construction and preparation, brothers Alex and Tim O'Meara are set to open their new brewery and restaurant this weekend.

O'Meara Bros. Brewing Co., located at 901 Bevins St., will celebrate its grand opening beginning at 11 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 6.

Final preparations were still under way on Monday, as Tim O'Meara discussed the opening against the sound backdrop of power tools.

It seems like construction will never end, he said.

However, the tools at work on Monday were being used to install lights over the business' signage.

That's literally the last thing, he said.

The O'Mearas describe their new venture as a fusion of microbrewery and restaurant, featuring several beers brewed on site and a specially designed menu of pub grub.

Alex, 30, and Tim, 27, grew up in Upper Lake and later moved to the Bay Area to pursue careers.

Tim O'Meara has been a homebrewer for years while his brother has been in business. In recent years they returned home and decided to go into business together.

We've been interested in running a business like this for our whole lives, Tim O'Meara said.

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O'Meara brothers prepare to open new brewery's doors

NIAGARA FALLS Construction of a new $22 million to $25 million Doubletree by Hilton hotel on Buffalo Avenue is expected to start by the end of next month.

Partial demolition of the former Fallside Hotel at 401 Buffalo Ave. is scheduled to begin in two weeks, the project architect told the city Planning Board Wednesday night.

Were going to be working all winter long, said James E. Boy, of Roberts, Shackleton & Boy, a Cheektowaga engineering and architecture firm. Construction on the project, being undertaken by Merani Hospitality LLC, will begin before demolition wraps up, Boy said.

The new hotel will include a nine-story, 84-foot tower which will overlook the Niagara River with the top two floors consisting of between 14 and 18 one-bedroom suites. The hotel, whose main entrance will be on Buffalo Avenue, will have between 193 and 195 rooms, depending on how many suites are included.

The construction work that starts before the demolition is completed will include building the towers foundation.

Most of the existing four-story building along the Robert Moses Parkway that was part of the Fallside is being demolished. The part that is being kept will be used for hotel rooms and banquet space, Boy said. The two banquet rooms, to be located on the first two floors, will be able to hold 450 and 250 people, respectively.

The hotel also will have a pool, as well as a restaurant and bar in the lobby area near the new front entrance on Buffalo Avenue. The restaurant also will have an outdoor eating area facing the river.

In terms of the inner-workings of the facility, it will have an indoor loading dock and indoor trash compactor.

In total, demolition is expected to take between two and two-and-a-half months. Construction is expected to take 18 months, with completion in March or April 2016, Boy said.

In March, project officials said demolition on the project would start as early as late April or early May of next year. On Wednesday, they said they have been dealing with regulators on asbestos issues at the site.

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Construction of new Niagara Falls hotel to start in November

The first Buffalo restaurant born of a food truck will be Marble + Rye, opening on Genesee Street in early 2015.

Michael Dimmer and Christian Willmott, proprietors of one of Buffalos most highly praised food trucks, will offer sandwiches, snacks and grown-up entrees at 112 Genesee St., around the corner from the new Catholic Health building.

Its been a hard couple years on the road with the truck, paying ourselves enough to sustain, since we knew this was the end goal, Dimmer said. Theyre hoping for a March opening, but who knows.

The restaurant will offer a takeout window and easy online ordering, aiming to lure time-strapped lunch crowds created by recent downtown developments, Dimmer said.

A big cast-iron griddle will be cooking up crusty burgers and perhaps taco fixings. A wood-fired oven will add smokiness too. There will be a full bar, and about 70 seats. Possible dishes will include a banh mi burger of local beef, and a steak frites version. There will be charcuterie.

There also will be toast. We have this crazy fascination for toast, especially wood-fired toast, Dimmer said. There will be a toast board that will be running, hopefully an important part of our menu.

Arancini will remain a truck-only feature, though.

Dimmer and Wilmott started the Black Market Food Truck in January 2013. They will be partners in Marble + Rye. With items like seasonal arancini and sandwiches of house-made mortadella, BMFT won Buffalo Sprees Best Food Truck award in 2013.

After a current hiatus for engine overhaul, the truck will be back on the road, Dimmer said. It will be a limited schedule during the winter, however. If its negative 10 outside, as weve seen firsthand, theres no sense in standing outside.

Closed: Hertel Avenue hamburger haven Sterling Place Tavern is closed for good.

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Buffalo food truck spawns Genesee Street restaurant

Buffalo Wild Wings, the Minneapolis-based restaurant and sports bar chain, has talked with developers of Tanglewood Pavilion but has no current plans to locate in Elizabeth Citys newest shopping center.

Chris Hake, director of retail development for Thompson Thrift, the Indiana-based firm developing Tanglewood Pavilion, confirmed his firms discussions with the popular eatery that specializes in chicken wings.

Hake said Thompson Thrift has been advised Elizabeth City is on Buffalo Wild Wings list for future expansion, but no local restaurant is currently planned.

We will continue to follow up with representatives from BWW as the project gets closer to grand opening, Hake said in a recent email.

Construction on Tanglewood Pavilion, which is located off Halstead Boulevard Extended adjacent to the Shoppes at Tanglewood, began in September and is expected to be complete by either late summer or early fall of next year.

A number of retail giants, including T.J. Maxx, Ross Dress for Less and Hobby Lobby, have already committed to locating stores at Tanglewood Pavilion. Zaxbys, the Georgia-based restaurant chain that also specializes in chicken wings, also has announced plans to build a restaurant in the new shopping center.

It was in fact a discussion about new restaurants that might locate at Tanglewood Pavilion that spurred the most recent speculation that Buffalo Wild Wings is also looking to expand here.

At a 4th Ward citizens meeting several weeks ago, Mayor Joe Peel mentioned Zaxbys commitment to build a restaurant here and then went on to say there was a possibility Buffalo Wild Wings might come as well.

City Manager Rich Olson noted that Buffalo Wild Wings has a very aggressive expansion plan in North Carolina. He also noted that Thompson Thrift representatives are in talks with the restaurant chain.

Representatives of Buffalo Wild Wings did not return repeated phone messages last week. The company did, however, respond by email, confirming what Hake had said about its current plans.

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No local Buffalo Wild Wings for now

For more than a year theres been a big hole in the South Perryneighborhood.

Thats soon to end, say the two Spokane doctors who own the property at Ninth Avenue and PerryStreet.

Lisanne Laurier and Harold Preiksaitis say theyve started work on a two-story commercial building at 907 S. Perry St. after overcoming soil problems, city permitting difficulties, revisions in design plans and the fact that theyve never undertaken a developmentbefore.

This is my first and my last project, said Preiksaitis, agastroenterologist.

The couple said they bought the property and demolished the

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An artists rendering of the building project at Ninth Avenue and PerryStreet. (Full-size photo)(All photos)

For more than a year theres been a big hole in the South Perryneighborhood.

Thats soon to end, say the two Spokane doctors who own the property at Ninth Avenue and PerryStreet.

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Construction begins on delayed South Perry project - Fri, 28 Nov 2014 PST

By Lisa P. White Contra Costa Times

CONCORD -- A national chain restaurant may replace the long-vacant former Marie Callender's on Diamond Boulevard, not far from the Willows Shopping Center.

David Deutscher Company, a Pleasant Hill brokerage and development firm, plans to demolish the existing 10,162-square-foot former restaurant at 2090 Diamond Blvd. and build a 6,470-square-foot building for an eatery plus an adjacent 6,340-square-foot building with up to three tenant spaces.

This is the first proposal Concord has received for the 1.45-acre property since Marie Callender's abruptly closed in June 2011, according to Joan Ryan, city planner.

The company has submitted architectural plans to the city for the $2.6 million construction project, however, they are waiting until they sign a lease with the prospective restaurant tenant before putting in a formal application, Deutscher said.

He declined to name the restaurant because negotiations are ongoing, but he hopes to finalize the restaurant lease in another two-to-three weeks. The firm also is in discussions with a bank to lease one of the other tenant spaces, Deutscher said.

Since purchasing the 35-year-old building in August 2013, more than a dozen restaurants the company has approached have said they would only consider moving into a new building on the site at the busy intersection of Diamond Boulevard and Galaxy Way, Deutscher said.

"We tried very hard to lease the building as it was and because it was a very specific building built for Marie Callender's no restaurateur had been willing to come in -- nobody wanted a pie factory," he said, noting that the kitchen is three times the size a typical restaurant requires.

In October, the city's Design Review Board gave the developer feedback on the project's conceptual plans which include an outdoor dining patio, landscaping and lighting. Board members asked the developer to produce a more consistent design among the lease spaces and perhaps add architectural elements to the building at the corner, according to Ryan.

Deutscher said they are listening to the city's concerns.

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Chain restaurant may replace former Marie Callender's in Concord

Steven Schussler, CEO of Schussler Creative, made fanciful restaurants such as Rainforest Cafe, T-Rex Caf and Yak & Yeti become reality. His latest project is the under-construction Boathouse, a 400-seat eatery that will help transition Downtown Disney into a new incarnation known as Disney Springs. Schussler recently talked with Orlando Sentinel reporter Dewayne Bevil about how the nautical-themed, waterfront restaurant will work.

How long has the Boathouse been in the works?

This is something we've been pitching for six years. The waterfront here has always been the back of the house. It's unbelievable. So I've been giving talks saying we should be turning this into the front of the house, not the back of the house. Obviously, Disney Imagineering and executives have been feeling this way for a long time.

What have been the building challenges?

Three-quarters of it is built over water. So it's one of the hardest construction projects we have ever built. We're using stainless steel and using all kinds of materials that ordinarily you would never use, to preserve the integrity of everything from the pipes to the decks. It's built to last 100 years and to be able to sustain the rising and lowering of the water levels. There are environmental issues, there are construction issues, there's the issue of not making noise working at night, there's issues of bringing beams in here on barges. We had to put 175 beams in the water down X amount of feet just to support it all.

What will be happening inside?

A: We have six different rooms. Every room is decorated differently. Not only art deco, but remnants of boathouses from the past for instance, the old navigational tools that they've used. It's really refreshing all original, never been done before. You can't be at Disney and not be creative. There has to be a story. I'm very blessed to have Disney Imagineering tell the story. This is supposed to be an old boathouse and over the years we've added onto it.

What's up with the food?

We found Gibson's out of Chicago, the No. 1 steakhouse in Chicago. [It's the] first time they're leaving Chicago to come somewhere else. What I found is that whether you're creating something for teenagers or young adults or you're creating things for older people, everybody likes class, and everybody likes great food.

I know that we're building wows. I know that. But people come once for the wow factor. They come back for quality food and service. I really want to emphasis the food factor. Without that you have nothing.

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Creator: Water will work for Disney Springs restaurant

In an epic year of Buffalo restaurant openings, the announcement that James Roberts is opening a restaurant is the cherry on the sundae.

Toutant will be on Ellicott Street, next to SeaBar, in the former Golden Swan building, 437 Ellicott St. Roberts will be chef-owner, with Rocco Termini of Signature Development as his landlord. With construction underway, expect it in early 2015.

Im shooting for January, but my heart tells me itll probably be February, Roberts said. The 120-seat restaurant is expected to use three floors of the building.

Roberts, executive chef at Park Country Club since 2007, is from bayou country, St. Bernard Parish, La. His place is named after his great-grandfathers hunting and trapping camp. There, Roberts will aim to serve meals that recall early childhood family dinners, demonstrating the heart, preparation and comfort experienced at those gatherings.

Hes excited, he said. I think Ive got a piece of what Buffalo wants everyday food done extremely well, at a reasonable price, in an atmosphere where everyone can sit together, no worries about being underdressed or overdressed.

Hell aim to offer dinner and a drink for $30 to $35, casual comfort food done incredibly consistently, incredibly well, he said. I dont want seven things they cant pronounce on a plate. I want them to look at it and go, This is great, and while theyre eating it go Holy (expletive) why is it this great? Thats my goal.

The menu will be broader than Cajun, though, with vast amounts of fresh Gulf seafood and shellfish, buttermilk fried chicken, and accurate renditions of numerous Southern favorites like jambalaya, house-smoked sausages, cast iron skillet cornbread, and authentic barbecue offerings.

Unless you are a Park Country Club member, Roberts is probably the best Buffalo chef you never heard of, but his influence has been felt in the restaurant world, across Western New York and beyond. Roberts training and mentoring program has shaped young cooks who have moved on up to run high-end kitchens from California to the British West Indies.

Former Roberts assistant Corey Siegel represented the U.S. at Bocuse dOr, the international culinary competition, and was chosen for the American Culinary Federations Olympic-caliber competition team. Closer to home, Brad Rowell has helped make East Auroras Elm Street Bakery a dining destination with a fine touch. Dustin Murphy is now head chef at Tabree, in Snyder.

After steering numerous restaurants and food programs, Roberts finally has a ship of his own. Im hoping, humbly, that I can manage both good cooking and sound business, and do something good here, he said. To put everything you have on the line, step out into the left lane and just go for it, is incredibly nerve-wracking.

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Anchor Bar location opens on Transit Road

BurgerFuel Worldwide (BFW) has opened a 12th restaurant in the United Arab Emirates this week, in prosperous Abu Dhabi, kicking off a busy festive season for the company that has several additional sites currently under construction in New Zealand, Australia and the Middle East.

BFW now have 23 restaurants in the Middle East North Africa (MENA) region, located in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Egypt. The new restaurant, which will be operated by BFWs UAE Master Franchisee, AKI Group, is located on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi, a man-made island operating as the Middle Easts largest tourist and business playground.

Abu Dhabi is the wealthiest emirate of the UAE and is known for its high Gross Domestic Product and Per Capita Income. The affluent nature of the citizens and their global outlook mean it is the perfect location for BurgerFuel to grow and develop the brand footprint.

One of the regions most luxurious leisure and entertainment destinations, Yas Island is popular with visitors from all over the Middle East as well as with tourists from around the world. The island plays host to key attractions such as a Formula 1 track, Ferrari World, Yas Water World, large indoor and outdoor concert arenas, one of the worlds top golf courses, and the iconic Viceroy Hotel and marina.

Tyrone Foley, Chief Operating Officer, BurgerFuel Worldwide, comments: "Yas Mall is now the largest mall in Abu Dhabi and were thrilled to be serving New Zealands original gourmet burger in such a dynamic tourist location that will allow the brand such great exposure".

BFW, who now have 64 stores globally, released their Preliminary Half Year Results earlier this month, reporting a solid six months of growth with a profit increase of 122%. As of the 30th of September 2014, the company holds cash reserves of $8.2 million, with no debt.

BurgerFuel Worldwide (BFW) is a New Zealand gourmet burger concept and is listed on the New Zealand Stock Exchange (NZAX). BurgerFuel shares are currently trading at $3.45.

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BurgerFuel opens on Yas Island, Abu Dhabi