Thursday, August 21, 2025
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DevelopmentMidwestMinnesotaRestaurantRetail

Taco Bell Opens New Drive-Thru Prototype in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota

by Kristin Harlow

BROOKLYN PARK, MINN. — Taco Bell has opened its new and innovative drive-thru prototype in the Minneapolis suburb of Brooklyn Park. Coined Taco Bell Defy, the two-story restaurant features four drive-thru lanes. A proprietary vertical lift transports food items straight from the kitchen to guests. The drive-thru experience at Taco Bell Defy is designed to be two minutes or less. The restaurant was built in partnership with longtime franchisee Border Foods. Minneapolis-based Vertical Works Inc. handled the design of the concept. The project was first announced last year.

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Bridgewater-Commons-Orlando-FL
AcquisitionsFloridaRestaurantRetailSoutheast

FrostPoint Capital Acquires Bridgewater Commons Shopping Center in Orlando for $9.9M

by Amy Works

ORLANDO, FLA. — FrostPoint Capital has purchased Bridgewater Commons, a shopping center in Orlando, from Fort Lauderdale, Fla.-based HS Capital for $9.9 million. Winn-Dixie anchors the 62,460-square-foot retail center, which is shadow-anchored by a CVS/pharmacy outparcel that was not part of the transaction. Other tenants include Subway, Avalon Dance Studio, Two Guys Pizzeria, Amigos Barbershop, New Shang Hai Restaurant, Winn-Dixie Liquors and Greenberg Dental. Kirk Olson and Drew Kristol of Institutional Property Advisors (IPA), a division of Marcus & Millichap, represented the seller and procured the West Palm Beach, Fla.-based buyer in the deal.

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Michael Jacobs NAI Retail Challenges
Content PartnerFeaturesLeasing ActivityMidwestMixed-UseNAINortheastRestaurantRetailSoutheastTexasWestern

Which Way is the Retail Pendulum Swinging?

by Sarah Daniels

Although the pandemic wreaked havoc on the retail sector in general, the culling of weak concepts has left space for strong retailers to flourish. The retail industry is seeing an explosion in experiential retail, medical/dental space is ubiquitous and non-traditional tenants are jumping at opportunities to secure prime locations. As a result, shopping centers have proven very resilient, says George Macoubray, vice president of retail brokerage with NAI Elliott in Portland, Oregon. “Today’s centers continue to evolve and to address what consumers need in terms of a place for people to congregate and participate in the activities that are important to them.” The entertainment sector was hit hard by the pandemic, he notes. “But now those operators seem to be out looking for locations, and they’re seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. People want to gather. They want to be entertained. They want to go out and do activities. Those kinds of experiences are happening more and more often in shopping centers — and you can’t buy those activities on Amazon.” Exciting new in-person experiences are helping to elevate shopping centers. “There’s an influx of experiential retail. From golf simulator experiences to ping-pong places to axe-throwing activities, …

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AcquisitionsNew YorkNortheastRestaurantRetail

Hanley Investment Group Arranges $2.4M Sale of Restaurant Building in Ithaca, New York

by Taylor Williams

ITHACA, N.Y. — California-based brokerage firm Hanley Investment Group has arranged the $2.4 million sale of a 7,500-square-foot restaurant building in the upstate New York community of Ithaca that is fully leased to Texas Roadhouse. The property was built on 1.4 acres in 2015. Jeff Lefko and Bill Asher of Hanley Investment Group, along with Parasell Inc., represented the California-based buyer in the transaction. Dalton Barnes of Alpha Real Estate Advisors represented the Chicago-based seller.

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Viewpoint-Restaurant-Estacada-OR
AcquisitionsOregonRestaurantRetailWestern

Norris & Stevens Brokers Acquisition of Viewpoint Restaurant in Estacada, Oregon

by Amy Works

ESTACADA, ORE. — Norris & Stevens has arranged the sale of Viewpoint Restaurant, located at 20189 and 20195 S. Springwater Road in Estacada. Shadado Inc., doing business as Bent Shovel Brewing, purchased the property for an undisclosed price. Situated on 4.5 acres, the 10,000-square-foot restaurant features views of Mt. Hood, 32 parking spaces and access to Milo McIver State Park. Bent Shovel Brewing creates hand-crafted ales and lagers on a 10-barrel system along the Clackamas River in Oregon City. The Viewpoint Restaurant will remain a full-service restaurant, bar, beer garden and patio, as well as a small music venue. Tim Pfeiffer of Portland-based Norris & Stevens represented the buyer, while Mike Foley of First Commercial Real Estate represented the seller in the deal. The seller and price were not disclosed.

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AcquisitionsGeorgiaNet LeaseRestaurantSoutheast

Marcus & Millichap Brokers $3.5M Sale of Metro Atlanta Restaurant Site Leased to Chick-fil-A

by John Nelson

SUWANEE, GA. — Marcus & Millichap has brokered the $3.5 million sale of a single-tenant, net-leased restaurant in metro Atlanta ground leased to Chick-fil-A. Built in 2007, the property is located on a 1.2-acre lot at 1035 Peachtree Industrial Blvd. in Suwanee. A locally based, privately held buyer purchased the restaurant through a 1031 exchange in an all-cash transaction. Don McMinn of Marcus & Millichap’s Taylor McMinn Retail Group brokered the deal. “This transaction demonstrates the strong demand for trophy net-lease assets and the peak pricing they are commanding despite inflation and interest rate hikes,” says McMinn.

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Ascension-Coffee-Dallas
FeaturesRestaurantRetail

Good Luck Opening A Restaurant Today

by Taylor Williams

By Taylor Williams Well before a global pandemic barreled through the nation, destroying the jobs, savings and legacies of thousands of American businesses, launching a new restaurant was still a daunting task. According to 2021 data from National Restaurant Association, 30 percent of U.S. restaurants fail within their first year of opening. Relentless competition, high employee turnover, razor-thin margins, misfired marketing campaigns — all represent major operating minefields that come with such ventures. The industry is not for faint-of-heart entrepreneurs, and even with the aid of a healthy economy, a talented and experienced operator and a prime location, there are no guarantees of success.  One might think that with COVID-19 causing food and beverage (F&B) businesses to fail and sending vacated spaces back to the market, finding quality locations at affordable rates would be feasible in the current environment. But that’s hardly the case in many major cities, especially those in states that implemented life-saving initiatives for its F&B operators early in the pandemic and has been “back to normal” for some time.   Minimal Vacancy While F&B markets across numerous states are flush with pent-up consumer demand to eat, drink and socialize, the logistical and financial challenges of launching …

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Leasing ActivityMichiganMidwestRestaurantRetail

Detroit Wing Co. to Open 1,900 SF Restaurant in Lansing, Michigan

by Kristin Harlow

LANSING, MICH. — Detroit Wing Co. has leased a 1,900-square-foot space at 6527 S. Cedar St. in Lansing for a new restaurant location. Based in Eastpointe, Detroit Wing Co. opened in 2015 and offers homemade wings and 19 signature sauces. Jack Brown, Troy Yensen and Brandon Hess are franchising the new restaurant. Jeff Ridenour and Shawn O’Brien of Colliers Lansing represented the landlord, Wolverine Development Corp., which redeveloped the property about five years ago. Detroit Wing Co. will be situated next to a Tropical Smoothie Café location and is expected to open in late July.

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DevelopmentIllinoisMidwestOfficeRestaurantRetail

EQ Office Completes $500M Renovation of Willis Tower in Chicago

by Kristin Harlow

CHICAGO — EQ Office, the U.S. office portfolio company wholly owned by Blackstone, has completed its more than $500 million renovation of Chicago’s Willis Tower. The 110-story tower is now certified LEED Platinum and is the largest building in the U.S. to achieve that designation, according to EQ Office. Part of the transformation is Catalog, a 300,000-square-foot retail, dining and entertainment destination at the base of the tower. The name Catalog is a nod to the Sears Roebuck Co. and its printed catalog. Designed by Gensler, Catalog features restaurants such as Tortazo by Rick Bayless, Shake Shack, Joe & the Juice, Foxtrot, Starbucks, Brown Bag Seafood Co., Do-Rite Donuts & Chicken, Sushi-San and Sweetgreen. Kindling, a two-story restaurant concept from Chicago’s 50/50 Group, as well as Urbanspace, a food hall, are both slated to open in late summer or early fall. A 30,000-square-foot outdoor terrace sits atop Catalog. The Skydeck observatory at Willis Tower also underwent a renovation through partnerships with exhibit design firms Thinc and SOM. An interactive “best of Chicago” museum-like exhibit celebrates the personality, history and neighborhoods of Chicago. Gensler designed the building’s new exterior façade at the base. SKB Architecture and Design handled the design of …

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USQ-Somerville
Market ReportsNortheastNortheast Market ReportsRestaurantRetail

Mixed-Use Owners in Northeast Face Retail Tenancy Dilemma

by Taylor Williams

By Taylor Williams As the pandemic recedes from the minds and wallets of American consumers, the food and beverage (F&B) industry finds itself embroiled in a host of new financial problems, driven this time by pure economics rather than public health. Inflation and supply chain disruption are working both in tandem and within independent channels to bring new hardships to the sector, mainly in the form of elevated costs and delayed timelines for operating and expanding restaurants of all types. At the same time, F&B owners and operators finds themselves awash with pent-up demand to dine out, drink, socialize and enjoy entertainment attractions and activities. Meanwhile, across the Northeast, quality F&B spaces that went dark during the first 18 months of the pandemic have largely been reabsorbed. That confluence of circumstances encapsulates major incentives and opportunities for landlords to raise rents. Add in the fact that these property owners have in many cases been operating on deferred, reduced or restructured rent payment schedules for much or all of the last two years, and the move to push F&B rents is even more justifiable. For owners of traditional retail product — from power centers to neighborhood strip malls to single-tenant, net-leased …

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