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ning for a restaurant in that spot and said once Diane Lee visited the location it was the easiest lease he has ever negotiated. Izziban will feature an extensive Sake list and a unique menu of Asian inspired dishes mixed with other types of cuisine. They will also offer a tabletop barbecue menu where customers order their meat and other dishes and cook the food themselves. “It is a very social thing, people can share whatever meat or vegetable they want,” said Izziban general manager Daniel Moon. “The server will show them how if they have never done it before.” For Rechter, attracting such a high-quality tenant is vindication of his vision and another step in his ultimate plan. He so firmly believed his plan, he was ready to take on the restaurant himself if he couldn’t find the right tenant. “I said to myself this location is getting better, it is by itself not great, but then we started getting success with the Majestic and the Vero Bowl,” he said. “Since I was doing all the work myself anyways, I had it all set to go regardless if a tenant stepped into the picture or not. I didn’t realize acquiring a tenant would happen just as I was starting to pound my first nail. “In terms of timing, Game Zone is set to open mid-June. Izziban we expect to open no later than Labor Day and the billiard club will be right behind that, so by October 1st this whole corner will be rocking.” Rechter is also working on plans to spruce up the Indian River Plaza, also known as the K-Mart Center. He is considering a mix of tenants that will include upper-end and casual restaurants. “We intend to raze the old Denny’s and replace it with a new building. It will be broken into four spaces facing U.S. 1 and four facing inward,” he said. “I am talking with a concept called Jimmy John’s, a gourmet sub place, they have about 3,000 locations. Chipotle Mexican
PHOTO BY M. JAMES NORTHEN
Vero Bowl has recently undergone a $2.5 million facelift into a state-of-the-art facility.
Grill is looking to come to Vero and that corner would be perfect for them. We are just in talks, nothing is signed yet. We also haven’t gotten
a yea or nay yet from P.F. Chang’s, they have a casual dining concept called Pei Way. “In the next three or four years,
you will see all this. You will see great restaurants, upscale, downscale casual dining, a full range of dining options.”
Casual seafood restaurant to open at former Stax location VERO BEACH NEWSWEEKLY
A July 15 opening is planned for the Fishack, a casual seafood restaurant at 1931 Old Dixie Highway, which most recently was the home of Stax. The business is owned by Ethan Weiss, who along with his father, Mitchell, will operate the restaurant. The Weiss family also owns Pizoodle’s, which will continue under the direction of Jo Ann Weiss and chil-
dren Alex and Alissa. Work is still underway at the Fishack adding a nautical décor to the premises with a strong emphasis on casual. Jo Ann Weiss said the place will have a “beachy,” tiki bar feel to it. The menu will feature fried fish platters, fish tacos, fish sandwiches, New England fried clams, lobster and lobster salads.
When it is fully operational, the Fishack will be open seven days a week for lunch and dinner and will host a Sunday brunch as well. For those looking for late night entertainment there will be offerings of beach and reggae music. “It will be the kind of place where people can come and hang out,” Jo Anne Weiss said. “This will be the casual spot to eat seafood.”