That weird retail space at the base of Plaza Towers

[MJLO]

That part of downtown is just hyper competitive for restaurants.  It didn't help that Bagger Dave's is/was a mediocre chain in decline that no one thought about to begin with.  I never saw that lasting.  Honestly i'm not the least bit surprised about Russo's either.   There's not a whole lot of traffic/resident base near that corner yet.  It was more of a niche concept  over convenience, I can't imagine a lot of people had much reason to go regularly.  

I can see a restaurant doing ok there, but it'd have be something by one of the local foodie restaurant groups that have a proven track record with new concepts.  Perhaps a local market with a more practical everyday selection, and not as heavy on the pretentious cold cuts. 

[organsnyder]

Russo's would have fared better if they had put more emphasis on dining—they had a good offering, but service was inconsistent. They also did little to promote it—a lot of my colleagues (I work in 25 Ottawa, across Fulton) weren't even aware that they served food.

[GR_Urbanist]

Maybe it just needs to be a Chick-fil-A?

 

[GRDadof3]

8 hours ago, organsnyder said:

Russo's would have fared better if they had put more emphasis on dining—they had a good offering, but service was inconsistent. They also did little to promote it—a lot of my colleagues (I work in 25 Ottawa, across Fulton) weren't even aware that they served food.

What are you guys talking about? Russo's is a "market" first and foremost, not a restaurant. Their 29th Street location has a huge following. I'm sort of surprised it didn't do better just as a party store, AKA Martha's Vineyard of downtown seems like it would do well. 

[wingbert]

I'm telling ya, that should be an Orvis shop.

[organsnyder]

13 hours ago, GRDadof3 said:

What are you guys talking about? Russo's is a "market" first and foremost, not a restaurant. Their 29th Street location has a huge following. I'm sort of surprised it didn't do better just as a party store, AKA Martha's Vineyard of downtown seems like it would do well. 

I think it's due to the location. Downtown dwellers are either driving out to the superstores they've grown up shopping at, or they're ordering online. They might pop in there for occasional immediate needs, but it's tough to build a business on those sales. The Downtown Market learned the same lesson.

[discgrab21]

I thought I saw a new sign up at this space today.  Anybody know what (if anything) is happening there?

[demhem]

29 minutes ago, discgrab21 said:

I thought I saw a new sign up at this space today.  Anybody know what (if anything) is happening there?

According to the GR permit map it is going to be an indian restaurant called Pind Indian Cuisine . 

[Pattmost20]

2 hours ago, demhem said:

According to the GR permit map it is going to be an indian restaurant called Pind Indian Cuisine . 

I really wish them the best, but I can't help thinking this is a terrible idea. If burgers and fries aren't going to sell there, I'm not sure any restaurant could make it. Maybe if they offer free lunch delivery to businesses downtown...

[joeDowntown]

I wish Eenhorn would rip the one story building down and build something else. Other than Kinkos, it’s had constant turnover. Heck, it even has parking a parking lot in front. I’d love to see a development that fronted Fulton with views of the river. Even if it were only for or five stories, o think it’s a great spot for redevelopment. 

Joe

[ironyisadeadscene]

6 hours ago, joeDowntown said:

I wish Eenhorn would rip the one story building down and build something else. Other than Kinkos, it’s had constant turnover. Heck, it even has parking a parking lot in front. I’d love to see a development that fronted Fulton with views of the river. Even if it were only for or five stories, o think it’s a great spot for redevelopment. 

Joe

Eventually... 

[MsSuperPartyWonderFunDay]

I for one can't wait for the indian restaurant to open! I work at 25 Ottawa too and <3 Indian food! I never ate at Bagger Dave's because of their pricing, and the one time I thought I'd stop by Russo's to pick something up, is when I found out they had gone under. I would happily pay ten bucks for a lunch from an indian restaurant though. That food is soooooooooooo good!!

 

I will say, the arrangement of that building in relation to the skywalk leaves much to be desired. It would be nice if they had a stairwell  on the outside of that building so one would not have to either walk that creepy maze from that Skywalk exit near the hotel or get down at the parking lot across the street from the building.

Edited July 30, 2019 by MsSuperPartyWonderFunDay

[ZAP!]

On 7/30/2019 at 11:08 AM, MsSuperPartyWonderFunDay said:

I will say, the arrangement of that building in relation to the skywalk leaves much to be desired. It would be nice if they had a stairwell  on the outside of that building so one would not have to either walk that creepy maze from that Skywalk exit near the hotel or get down at the parking lot across the street from the building.

Agree 100%. Exits from the skywalk, and resources directing pedestrians to it, definitely need a rethink. Google Maps will never give you proper directions using it for example, because it doesn't know where any of the exits are besides the start and end. Plus you'd be hard-pressed to find much signage for it on the ground.

Also, (belated) welcome to the forum! 

[grandrollerz]

I for one can't wait for the indian restaurant to open! I work at 25 Ottawa too and

couple of weeks ago it was Indian independence day and I like to celebrate those sorts of holidays by steeping myself in their food of the culture, the food i ad from Pind was amazing. I can't speak to the restaurant because I got takeout, but food was great. highly recommend.



Sent from my Acer Chromebook R11 (CB5-132T, C738T) using Tapatalk

[ironyisadeadscene]

I used to work at Plaza, and I still talk to my guys there a lot. Eenhoorn is putting in a series of tiny houses in the parking lot and some in the grass. Apparently very soon. 

And they will be occupied. Its not an art installation. 

[joeDowntown]

12 hours ago, ironyisadeadscene said:

I used to work at Plaza, and I still talk to my guys there a lot. Eenhoorn is putting in a series of tiny houses in the parking lot and some in the grass. Apparently very soon. 

And they will be occupied. Its not an art installation. 

Temporary or permanent tiny houses? Is it a development, or an experiment? Do tell!

Joe

[ironyisadeadscene]

2 hours ago, joeDowntown said:

Temporary or permanent tiny houses? Is it a development, or an experiment? Do tell!

Joe

Dunno. I know they want to build something large on that land, but they have discussed that for nearly 20 years. 2 years ago, the plan was a huge ferris wheel. Who knows what's the plan now.

[Cookin_peacocks]

There is a fence around Pind

 

 

[Cookin_peacocks]

They're redoing the patio awning. Also, the tiny house thing I posted about has no updates and someone that works at the property fully expects it to be like every other project at that lot that never happens.

[GR_Urbanist]

I'm hoping that is just some sort of primer paint job, otherwise I'm not feeling the cold new Steak-n-Shake look.

[jthrasher]

1 hour ago, GR_Urbanist said:

I'm hoping that is just some sort of primer paint job, otherwise I'm not feeling the cold new Steak-n-Shake look.

that looks nothing like Steak-n-Shake.   I love the new look. 

[Cookin_peacocks]

1 hour ago, GR_Urbanist said:

I'm hoping that is just some sort of primer paint job, otherwise I'm not feeling the cold new Steak-n-Shake look.

Yeah, the white looks awful, but it matches the parking ramp, so....

[joeDowntown]

The building has awnings, etc. so I’m sure the final product may look really nice and have contrast/color. 

Joe