Grove Bay Group Opening a Restaurant South of Fifth: Is Jeremy Ford Involved?

This past in April, Jeremy Ford announced he was leaving Matador Room to forge a partnership with Grove Bay Hospitality Group.

Now details have emerged about the possible location of one of them.

According to the Real Deal, Grove Bay Hospitality Group has subleased the former Tiramesu space at 101 Washington Ave. in South Beach. Noah Fox of Koniver Stern Group, who represented Tiramesu in the transaction, told the real-estate site that the space would be transformed into a Jeremy Ford restaurant.

Grove Bay Hopsitality Group confirmed the sublease, but it did not disclose exactly what project would fit into the 2,000-square-foot space in Miami Beach's tony South of Fifth neighborhood.

“We are developing a number of concepts and always on the hunt for great locations," Grove Bay cofounder and CEO Ignacio Garcia-Menocal says in an email. "We fell in love with the [Tiramesu] space and locked it in. What concept will find a home there is still a work in progress.”

A representative for Grove Bay Hospitality says a few concepts with Ford are in the works, with at least two in the development stage. "What will go into the Tiramesu space will be determined."

In April, Garcia-Menocal told New Times that initial plans were for Ford to open two restaurants, with the larger located on the site of the multi-use Grove Bay project on Coconut Grove's waterfront.

The second concept, however, fits nicely into the 80-seat Tiramesu space. The Grove Bay CEO acknowledged in a previous interview with New Times that the eatery will not be located in Coconut Grove or Wynwood and it will be an intimate, chef-driven restaurant.

Ford achieved national fame when he won the title of Top Chef on the Bravo culinary competition show last year.

The Grove Bay team, which consists of CEOs Francesco Balli and Garcia-Menocal and chief operating officer Eddie Acevedo, is making a mark on Miami's culinary scene. In addition to Ford, they also have relationships with Giorgio Rapicavoli on Coconut Grove's Glass & Vine and Jeff McInnis and Janine Booth on Stiltsville Fish Bar, which is scheduled to open this summer in South Beach. The team also owns and operates Big Easy Winebar & Grill and American Harvest.