Whiskey Cake Kitchen & Bar spokesperson Jami Sharp said the Jacksonville restaurant will open this fall.
“It looks like we are on track for an October opening,” Sharp said by email July 16. She did not have a specific date.
The former Ida Claire restaurant at Town Center is undergoing extensive renovations for Whiskey Cake.
The city issued a permit April 17 for the conversion at 10209 River Coast Drive.
Ida Claire opened in November 2019 and closed March 10 after Dallas-based FB Society, parent of both restaurant concepts, confirmed Jan. 24 that Ida Claire will become Whiskey Cake.
And Ida Claire’s signature Airstream trailer used as outdoor lounge space remains for use by Whiskey Cake.
“We are planning to renovate the Airstream to make an ideal place to sip a craft cocktail and create new stories,” said FB Society Chief Brand Officer Rae Phillips-Luther on April 16.
Sharp is head of PR and communications for FB Society.
Plans call for remodeling the Ida Claire space with new interior finishes and furniture; redoing the exterior finishes; construction of new parapets; and replacing patio furniture.
Phillips-Luther expected to keep Ida Claire General Manager Jabari Simpson and many of the 60 to 80 existing employees.
Accelerated Construction Services, with offices in Orlando and Texas, is the contractor for the interior and exterior remodeling of the more than 6,700-square-foot property.
The permit showed a project cost of $890,000.
Whiskey Cake will have 314 seats, including 62 on the patio. Private dining is available for 42 seats, or 84 standing.
“Whiskey Cake Kitchen & Bar is an everyday urban tavern with wood-fired and full flavored dishes, innovative craft cocktails, a killer library of spirits and an array of exclusive barrel picks,” says website whiskeycake.com.
Ida Claire is described as a Southern-inspired destination with a menu of lunch, supper, brunch, “vinyl hour” and beverages and cocktails.
Ida Claire currently has two Texas locations in Addison and San Antonio.
Whiskey Cake has 10 locations, comprising eight in Texas, one in Oklahoma and one in Florida, in Tampa. Jacksonville is listed as coming soon.
The Tampa menu includes lunch and dinner, brunch, drinks, a whiskey list and social hour.
There, snacks range from $9.50 flash-fried Brussels sprouts to $17 “drunk mussels” made with Lagunitas IPA.
Main dishes start at $20 for Harvest Shepard’s Pie to a $41 rib-eye.
There also are burgers, hot sandwiches, salads, sides, desserts and a menu for children.
There also is brunch, bar bites and drinks.
The long list of whiskeys, a 2-ounce pour, start at $9 for George Dickle #8 and bourbon at $8 for Jim Beam. The most expensive is the $300 The Macallan 25-year single-malt scotch.
That menu also has Canadian, Irish, Texas, Scotch, rye and world choices.
Phillips-Luther said Ida Claire faced difficult timing.
“Ida Claire opened right before the pandemic began, and it’s just hard to gain momentum after that kind of entry,” she said.
FB Society rebranded in 2020 from Front Burner Restaurants LLC.
In permit information, the restaurant owner for Whiskey Cake is shown as Front Burner Restaurants of Dallas.
Zebra Architecture PLLC of Scottsdale, Arizona, is the architect.
It would be the third restaurant at the building. Developed in 2005, it opened as Mimi’s Cafe on an outparcel in the first phase of St. Johns Town Center. Mimi’s closed in April 2019.
Ida Claire Jacksonville LLC bought the 1.23-acre property in April 2019 from FLLM LLC, based in Orlando, for $2.7 million, and renovated it.