The HUB Brooklyn dining concept is tentatively set to open on Jan. 19, owner Mark Janasik said.
The three-level building at 400 Riverside Ave. houses three restaurants: a Southern Grounds coffee shop; a Mediterranean-themed full-service restaurant called Alder & Oak; and Zorba’s Bar, a rooftop bar with views of the city’s skyline and the St. Johns River.
Under construction since November 2024, the establishment is at Riverside Avenue and Forest Street, across the street from FIS headquarters and the Morgan & Morgan law offices in the 501 Riverside Ave. building.
Mark Janasik
Janasik said the opening date of The HUB was fluid, dependent on the installation of some kitchen equipment and on the property passing inspections. He said he expected the businesses to open no later than Feb. 1.
Janasik, owner of Southern Grounds coffee shops, expects all three businesses at The HUB to open at the same time.
He envisions the property to be a gathering and date spot.
The terraced restaurants will be open daily and offer mostly alfresco dining, with as much as 95% of the seating being outdoors, he said.
Janasik has experience with outdoor dining at his Neptune Beach and Jacksonville Beach Southern Grounds locations.
“We have the most successful coffee shop in the city, and that’s 97% outside,” he said of the Neptune Beach Southern Grounds.
“So we love the outside. You know, people in Miami do it all the time.”
Plans call for Southern Grounds to open at 6:30 a.m., then convert to a dessert and wine bar at 4 p.m. It will remain open until Alder & Oak and Zorba’s Bar close, anticipated to be 11 p.m. Sunday through Wednesday and midnight Thursday through Saturday.
The HUB Brooklyn features a courtyard area with stairs leading to the rooftop Zorba’s Bar.
Photo by Monty Zickuhr
Alder & Oak will be open for lunch and dinner service. The three businesses will be open daily.
Janasik said the outdoor seating was designed to reduce interior space, which saves utility costs, and to inspire social activity.
“We have, you know, intimate spaces, but we have covered terraces. Also, even in inclement weather you can eat. We have heaters and fans and great landscaping,” he said.
Janasik co-developed the project with Joe Cronk and Cliff Duch of Cronk Duch Architecture & Planning, whose firm designed the building. A Cronk Duch subsidiary, CD+urban studio, was involved in the development.
The HUB Brooklyn dining concept is at 400 Riverside Ave. It will include Southern Grounds coffee shop; a Mediterranean-themed full-service restaurant called Alder & Oak; and the rooftop Zorba’s Bar.
Photo by Monty Zickuhr
CD+urban studio focuses on consulting, planning, designing and branding urban infill projects with an emphasis on re-emerging neighborhoods.
The Downtown Development Review Board approved plans for the site in October 2020. They called for a three-level building and 2,593 square feet of outdoor space.
Southern Grounds will use 1,534 square feet of space on the ground floor. The second-level Alder & Oak will be 1,318 square feet.
A rendering of The HUB Brooklyn multiuse restaurant, office and event space under construction at 400 Riverside Ave.
On Oct. 18, 2023, the Downtown Investment Authority approved two Basic Retail Enhancement Program Grants for the coffee shop and restaurant for a combined $150,350.
Each award is structured as a forgivable, no-interest grant that will amortize at the rate of 2.778% each month after closing for three years with the condition that Alder & Oak and Southern Grounds remain in business at the location for three years.
In October 2022, Janasik paid $285,000 for the 0.21-acre site.
The city issued three permits Jan. 3, 2023, for Danis Construction LLC to build three shell buildings at a construction cost of almost $2.46 million.