Rubicon Holdings LLC is exploring the possibility of creating a restaurant incubator space at 232 Worthington St. The space used to hold Dewey’s Jazz Lounge before the bar/restaurant closed its doors in April.
Reminder Publishing photo by Ryan Feyre
SPRINGFIELD — The owner of 232 Worthington St., which formerly housed Dewey’s Jazz Lounge, is seeking to create a restaurant incubator at the location for aspiring entrepreneurs looking to “launch and grow their culinary businesses.”
Rubicon Holdings LLC, which purchased the property in 2019, is exploring the possibility of creating an incubator with shared kitchen space, business mentorship programs, access to resources and a collaborative community.
The project aims to “nurture and accelerate” the growth of emerging culinary entrepreneurs, along with those wishing to work within the restaurant and hospitality industry, according to Rubicon.
“The launch of the Springfield Culinary Incubator is anticipated to be a powerful catalyst for economic development, generating numerous employment opportunities within the local food sector and beyond,” Rubicon said in its announcement. “It is expected to inject fresh vibrancy and diversity into the city’s culinary landscape, offering residents and visitors an expanded range of dining options and innovative food products.”
Alfredo Orejuela, a manager of Rubicon, said in an interview that a survey has been released to the public to gauge interest on the new incubator plan and to find out what prospective operators may need for resources.
He said the incubator would welcome aspiring chefs or caterers, food truck operators considering a brick-and-mortar, individuals with a unique food concept, or anyone interested in the business side of the restaurant industry.
The survey, available in a couple different languages, will likely be up until mid-August, Orejuela said.
“The main thing would be figuring out how many people are interested so that we can tailor our initial programming to that and for grant applications, for equipment and capacity needs,” Orejuela said of the survey. “That’s why we’re asking people that are potentially thinking of any of these programs, ‘what type of business are you? What equipment do you need? What programs are you interested in doing?’
Because that’s really going to help us a lot in terms of crafting and purchasing that equipment.”
In dealing with commercial properties on a daily basis, Orejuela said he has noticed that restaurant operators need a lot of support to make their business successful. He shared that his restaurant industry tenants usually reside in three buckets: a novice who has an idea for a restaurant, an industry veteran who wants to get their idea off the ground and a seasoned entrepreneur that knows the ins and outs of the restaurant business.
As the industry continues to recover from the coronavirus pandemic, Orejuela said an incubator space would help these operators nurture their business before they potentially open their own restaurant.
“We see this as a catalyst opportunity where we can bring operators that fit into one of those three buckets and help them through the process of establishing their identity in the dining district there on Worthington Street, and really in Springfield in general,” Orejuela said.
According to Rubicon’s survey announcement, the incubator would provide a wide array of shared resources, including storage, packaging equipment and administrative support.
In addition to the shared kitchen space, the location would likely include an event space for artists and a “robust” mentorship program run by seasoned industry experts who will guide “all facets of business development.”
“This incubator would allow operators to try out their concepts in a downtown environment, in a high traffic area, for a fraction of cost that would be associated with doing it themselves,” Orejuela said. “It would allow multiple operators to test their concepts out over the course of the year and refine them and get them ready to be a minimum viable product that they can actually then take to the market.”
Dewey’s Jazz Lounge used to be a tenant at 232 Worthington St. before the business closed its doors in April. The business operated out of the space for almost four years.
In a Facebook message on April 9, Dewey’s owner Kenny Lumpkin said the decision was not made by them, and “was not made lightly.”
The restaurant also said on their Instagram that the closure is due to “circumstances beyond our control.”
“We hosted unforgettable performances, uplifted local talent and brought people together in ways that made a lasting impact,” Lumpkin said. “I am deeply proud of the role we played in contributing to the life and energy of downtown.”
On April 23, the License Commission gave Lumpkin three extra months to come back with a status update on the now dormant liquor license. The goal of the extension was to allow Lumpkin more time to find a new space for the lounge.
As for the incubator plans at 232 Worthington St., Orejuela said he wants to keep the interest survey open until at least August. After that, a working committee will form to help develop some of the programs for the new incubator.
The plan is to hopefully have a newly renovated space open by mid-August, according to Orejuela.
Readers interested in providing opinions about the future space can follow the survey link: tinyurl.com/mu9nt396.
