TRUMBULL — The new restaurant planned for the site formerly occupied by Bianco Rosso could be open as early as August, said Patrick Fahy, who leases the space. But that’s only possible if everything goes ahead in time.
“I’d love to open in August, but it’s still a question, ‘When will things ship?'” Fahy said.
However, he said the project is taking some steps forward. For example, at Wednesday’s planning and zoning commission meeting, the panel voted unanimously to transfer the facility’s liquor license to Fahy.
“This is a restaurant that has had a liquor license for 42 years,” P&Z Chairman Fred Garrity, Jr. said during the meeting. “I was able to have a drink there (in the past).”
The space has housed several restaurants over the years – most recently the Bianco Rosso, which closed late last year. Earlier this year, Fahy rented the space and announced plans to build a new restaurant there.
Fahy owns several restaurants in the area including Fatty Patty at 2 Daniels Farm Road and Parker. Steaks and Scotch at 921 White Plains Road. Earlier this year, Fahy spoke about how his goal was to transform the now-vacant space at the Trumbull Center into a meeting place for the neighborhood, akin to one of the space’s former residents, The Grille & Bar Restaurant.
The Trumbull Center corridor includes two major business plazas on either side of White Plains Road. One is the plaza at 900 White Plains Road where the former Bianco Rosso area is located and has several vacant storefronts including one that formerly housed Starbucks and another that was once occupied by the grocery store Porricelli’s Food Mart, which closed in 2012.
The other contains a CVS and a Starbucks with a drive-thru.
During the P&Z meeting, there was almost no discussion of the liquor license transfer application, and while Fahy was virtually “present” at the meeting, he did not comment further at the time. The request was approved unanimously.
“Good luck with your restaurant,” Garrity said.
Fahy said his next step is to go to the state liquor agency and while he doesn’t expect any problems, there are still steps to be taken before the restaurant can open. Though he’s said he has a name for the restaurant, he’s not releasing it just yet.
But Fahy said he remains enthusiastic about the project.
“I’m looking forward to creating a meeting place like this again,” he said.