Office parks have been getting more and more interesting with the advent of built-in amenities, from restaurant and cafes to bars and outdoor living spaces, that make the reality of corporate life a bit more bearable. Local hospitality development group Legal Restaurants is focusing on these value-added venues, with plans to open five office park restaurants in Southern California and Arizona in the next two years.
Last summer, the group launched a cafe in a downtown office tower in partnership with Nomad Donuts. This March, Legal Restaurants will bring a 10,000-square-foot, $4 million restaurant, cocktail bar, and cafe to the Poway-adjacent Kilroy Sabre Springs.
Named The Florence after local swimming star Florence Chadwick and decorated in a coastal theme with memorabilia honoring the 50s legend, it will span nine different event spaces and two acres of outdoor space that includes fire pits and a regulation-sized bocce ball court. Also notable is the return of Ricardo Heredia, a longtime local chef who gained acclaim at Alchemy in South Park and is an alum of the 2014 World Food Championship. As executive chef and partner at The Florence, Heredia will collaborate with the group’s founding chef Antonio Friscia and partner/culinary director Fern Tran, with the on-site bar and beverage program overseen by spirits director Jason O’Bryan (Lion’s Share) and wine director Victoria O’Bryan (Addison).