Restaurateur Dave Bailey continues to expand his strip of Locust Street downtown, announcing multiple projects yesterday, March 24.
Bailey said he will open another event space, Slate, at 1015 Locust St., this summer. Slate, which can accommodate 50 to 250 people, is meant to complement his other recently opened event space Willow at 321 N. 10th St.
“Slate is more stripped down and can be more flexible,” Bailey said. “Willow is naturally a more formal space with the chandelier. Slate can comfortably host many different kind of events like speaking engagements and corporate lunches and meetings.”
Bailey’s Fifth Wheel Catering will provide the food at Slate. “People can have different experiences, but you know who you’re working with the entire time,” he said.
Meanwhile, his newest restaurant, Shift, Test Kitchen & Take Out opens for carryout business on Tuesday, April 5. The restaurant will be open Monday through Friday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. for carry out of a rotating menu items and cuisines, the first of which is barbecue.
Bailey also announced that while he has acquired the space at 1001 Locust St., the concept was not announced; however, the barbecue concept he has scheduled to open in 2017 at 1011 Locust St. is still unnamed and on track.
Bailey does not plan future property acquisition at this time. “We’re going to focus on completing projects on the books now,” Bailey said. “Getting the properties was not something we planned necessarily, but as space came up, it made sense to pursue them.”
This article appears in March 2016.