Del Grande has planned two concepts at discovery green

[musicman]

The revitalization of downtown has had its false starts, and a number of restaurants have suffered the consequences.

So why would the Schiller Del Grande Restaurant Group want to build two restaurants in Discovery Green, the downtown park under construction?

Schiller Del Grande knows downtown's challenges firsthand. Cafe Express, which the group developed and sold to Wendy's International, has done solid business at its downtown spot for seven years but is only open for lunch.

Yet, his two new concepts in the park will be open day and night.

The more ambitious of the restaurants, the Grove, will have a casual upscale atmosphere, while the other, which has the working name the Boathouse, will sell fast food and snacks.

Schiller said his company will invest about $2 million in the two park restaurants.

By day, the Grove will have a floral garden look and at night will "be like a beacon. The bar will glow," said Candice Schiller, Schiller Del Grande's director of design.

Unlike some of the other bidders, Schiller Del Grande submitted a proposal unique for the park "We were interested in doing something geographically and historically appropriate," unlike, say, a Parisian-like bistro.

The Grove opens Dec. 11, serving dinner only, and lunch will be added after New Year's. The Boathouse launches in January when the park opens.

The Grove will serve Gulf Coast seafood, steaks, rotisserie dishes and salads. A number of items will have ethnic twists, and there will be "a killer hamburger," Robert Del Grande said. The Grove's bar will serve casual fare such as fried shrimp, cheeseburgers and onion rings.

Overlooking a big pond, the Boathouse will sell burgers, hot dogs, fried foods, ice cream, shakes and other picnic snacks along with beer and wine.

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Edited August 4, 2007 by musicman