Bill Roberts will be adding a sixth restaurant this summer after taking over the recently closed Fox Grill in Bloomfield Hills along Woodward Avenue, south of Long Lake Road. Plans are to reopen the eatery by August following a redesign by Ron Rea and the transfer of a liquor license, says Roberts, owner and president of Roberts Restaurant Group in Beverly Hills.
“We’re keeping the name and menu under wraps, but Ron Rea is working on the plans and it will be different from our nearest restaurants in that area — Streetside Seafood in Birmingham, along with Cafe ML and Roadside B&G, both in Bloomfield Township,” Roberts says.
“There’s a lot of offices in the area, so that will play nicely for lunch. We’ll have a happy hour, and the surrounding neighborhood is looking for a dining spot. We’ll have between 100 and 110 seats, and 25 to 30 seats outside. The patio will be freshened up to make it more appealing and comfortable.”
The eatery is scheduled to be open daily for lunch and dinner. Following the opening, Roberts will slow his expansion efforts after opening a restaurant in each of the last three years. His other restaurants include Town Tavern in downtown Royal Oak and Beverly Hills Grill in Beverly Hills.
In other additions to the area, West Elm, a subsidiary of Williams-Sonoma that sells furniture and other household items, will take over two retail spaces, totaling more than 9,500 square feet, on West Maple in downtown Birmingham, says John Heiney, executive director of the Birmingham Principal Shopping District. Previously, Lexi Drew, which moved to a different location in 2011, and Harmony House, which closed in 2002, used the space.
“We’re very pleased to welcome West Elm,” Heiney says. “They are an outstanding retailer and will be taking a prime space in our downtown shopping district. Our retail recruitment program, which has been in place for nearly five years, has focused on attracting these types of quality retail establishments.”
