Good Company will open in the former Layla space in the Grove in spring 2024

Good Company, a cocktail bar and restaurant from Jordan Goodman and his team at Good Ice, is slated to open in spring 2024 at the former Layla location at 4317 Manchester Ave. in the heart of the Grove.

“It’s a fully functioning restaurant, so the bones are already here, which is great,” Goodman said of the space. “We’re going to put a good amount of work into the cosmetics and give it a facelift and our own touch, but the buildout isn’t going to be all that long.”

Good Company will be an approachable, full-service neighborhood cocktail bar with a menu of gastropub fare, Goodman said. Burgers will be front and center – something between a smash burger and a steakhouse burger – with accoutrements like bacon, fried egg and onion available. The kitchen will offer sides including classic fried bites like french fries and onion rings, as well as additional options like deviled eggs and salads.

“We’ve always had the people on our team to execute on a restaurant,” Goodman said. “We had been looking at next steps for Good Ice and talks got started about a cocktail bar that would feature our ice and become a showroom for what we can do,” Goodman said. Those initial ideas morphed from a 30-seat cocktail bar to include a food menu as well.

“It’s really evolved from where we started to where we are now, but the heart of it is still the same: a craft cocktail bar that is putting a focus on the ice,” Goodman said. Good Ice's premium ice can be custom-made in a range of shapes and sizes, and Good Company will highlight that craftsmanship with an ice station featuring custom cubes being hand crafted, offering an interactive experience for guests.

“One of our inspirations was Attaboy [Nashville and New York cocktail bar],” Goodman said. “We had a great experience there and one of the cool things we saw was them hand-chipping ice to fit their glasses.”

Goodman has been helping to roll out Burger Champ, which opened earlier this month in Maplewood, and said owner Chris Kelling and executive chef Jeff Friesen have been generous with their expertise and advice on the best way to do a high-quality burger joint.

Good Company will initially seat somewhere between 72 and 84, Goodman said. That number will eventually increase, with sidewalk seating out front and patio seating in the rear adding another 40 seats or so.

“We should be able to get up to around 120 or so when we’re at full capacity,” Goodman said.

Follow Good Company’s progress via Instagram.