BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — A new restaurant and event space is opening this March at the foot of Lafayette Square.
Beebe's on the Square will combine a bistro, cocktail bar and event venue inside the Brisbane Building. It's part of an ongoing redevelopment effort by Peter Hunt, chair of Hunt Real Estate.
The reimagined space is designed to bring people back downtown through a combination of food, arts and culture.
"Very simply, I want people to come into this building and want to stay," said Hunt.
The new downtown destination addresses what Hunt sees as a gap in the current dining and entertainment landscape as workers slowly trickle back downtown.
"Right now, there's almost no place to go downtown if you want to stay after work with some colleagues," Hunt said. "We want to be that place."
WATCH: New bistro set to open inside Brisbane Building aims to revitalize downtown dining scene
Executive Chef Jess Melisz said the restaurant will offer a European-style menu with downtown workers top of mind.
"We're going to have a more European-style menu, a place for people to stop down for lunch, while they're at work, or stop down for happy hour or a drink when work is done for the day," Melisz said.
The venue will also provide full-service catering for private events within a space that proudly showcases local artists' work.
"All of our art is new, it's new art created by local artists, it's original work, and we want to be able to show that," said Hunt.
This commitment extends the vision of Hunt Art Gallery, which opened inside the Brisbane Building in 2022, to support Western New York artists through residency programs and exhibitions.
"We want people who want to make art their career and want to infuse that into the whole atmosphere of this building," Hunt said.
Hunt believes that the mix of food, art and culture in a welcoming space could be the perfect combination at a time when workers are slowly trickling back into offices, following years of working from home post-COVID.
"It's fun, and I think business needs to be fun again, going to the office needs to be fun again. This space will help make it fun, we hope," Hunt said.
Beebe's also plans to have live jazz through an expanded partnership with Jazz Buffalo. The restaurant will operate Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., with expanded outdoor dining expected in the summer months.
