The city issued a permit June 23 for Wilkinson Construction LLC to renovate the former Fresh-Mex & Co. space at 7111 Bentley Road for Le Petit Paris to open its third area cafe.
Wilkinson Construction, of Lake City, will renovate about 2,000 square feet of the 4,328-square-foot restaurant space at a project cost of $150,000.
The location is in the Southpoint area. Bentley Road formerly was known as Bonneval Road at that address.
Le Petit Paris intends to demolish the existing floor plan and add a sales counter along the side where patrons enter the front door. The dining area will feature a central greenhouse element with seating for 12. Outdoor dining remains.
Plans indicate total inside seating for about 67.
In March, owner Alex Chezaud said he planned to open his third location there this spring, four years after opening the first Le Petit Paris in Mandarin. The opening time frame is being adjusted.
Chezaud opened the first in 2019 at 9965 San Jose Blvd. in Merchants Walk in Mandarin. The second location opened in 2021 at 363 Atlantic Blvd. in the Shoppes of Northshore in Atlantic Beach.
Le Petit Paris is open for breakfast and lunch, serving salads, sandwiches made with baguettes and croissants, quiche and pastries with coffee and tea beverages as well as soft drinks, beer and wine.
The new restaurant, like the other Le Petit Paris locations, will offer outdoor dining. Because the new one is near two busy roads, Chezaud is using landscape buffering to reduce noise.
He said in March he expects it to seat between 110 and 120, including outdoor seating for about 50. He plans to employ a staff of about 70.
The new restaurant will be about 4,000 square feet, double the size of the other locations.
It will allow the company to offer catering services and serve as the prep kitchen for the other two restaurants.
He said the build-out budget is $350,000.
Fresh-Mex & Co.’s owners opened a new restaurant at 10281 Midtown Parkway in St. Johns Town Center.