I finally made it to R.O.S.E. last week for a satisfying lunch at one of the outdoor tables under the old marquee that dates to the days of the Avon Theater.
The sidewalks on Broughton Street are comfortably wide, and the one in front of R.O.S.E. seems especially uncluttered. It’s an ideal spot if you can snag a table outside.
The interior is warm and comfortable, too, with an elevated bar near the entrance and a couple of levels of seating beyond.
I had the prime rib dip sandwich ($12), which was simply excellent. The roll was toasted just right and the tender meat covered with Swiss. The house-made potato salad was good too.
Washed down with a cold Shock Top on draft, the lunch was one of the more satisfying I’ve had in a while.
The rest of the tempting lunch menu includes a variety of starters, salads, sandwiches and burgers. The dinner menu seems appropriately diverse and inventive, with most items in the general range of $20.
The space was last home to Lime Grill. Before that, it was Seasons of Japan Bistro and, even earlier, City Lights Theatre.
R.O.S.E. Public House will get some traffic from The Marshall House next door, and it’s located perfectly for diners headed to or from shows at the Lucas Theatre and Trustees Theater.
Broughton’s nagging empty spots
After lunch at R.O.S.E. Public House last week, I wandered down to Cardeologie at 312 W. Broughton St. to get a Mother’s Day card. (Happy Mother’s Day, Mom. I hope it got there in time.)
Broughton Street was bustling, but there are still those nagging empty spots.
Despite the shade, the south side of the street is less friendly to pedestrians because of some prominent vacancies. The former homes of a number of restaurants are sitting empty, including the spaces once occupied by aVida, Kokopelli’s, Shipwreck, Epazote and Satisfied.
Clipper Trading recently moved to 115 W. Broughton St., so one large corner at Broughton and Barnard streets is available.
The southwest corner of Broughton and Drayton streets has been vacant for quite some time. Since Levy Jewelers moved, the southeast corner of Broughton and Drayton is also idle. The corner vacancies are especially problematic.
Each of those empty corners on the south side of Broughton Street in effect pushes more pedestrians to the north side, which also benefits from being that much closer to Ellis Square, a number of hotels and other areas with heavier tourist traffic.
Vibrant corners can create a certain wrap-around effect that attracts pedestrians. By contrast, dead corners encourage pedestrians to head toward the nearest signs of activity.
One of the most important corners for the vitality of Broughton Street isn’t even on Broughton.
The southeast corner of Congress and Montgomery streets has been sitting empty and rundown since 606 East Café moved out a decade ago. So when pedestrians get to Franklin Square at the west end of City Market, there’s nothing luring them to turn south toward Broughton.
Now that key corner is undergoing renovation, and a new building is planned to fill the gap once occupied by 606’s patio.
Earlier this year, the Historic Review Board reviewed documents that suggested Anthropologie was going to move into that corner, but that information has not been publicly confirmed by the retailer or by the landowner.
That lovely old building backs up to Marc by Marc Jacobs at the northeast corner of Broughton and Montgomery streets. A vibrant corner on Congress Street will draw more shoppers south toward West Broughton Street.
The increased activity will boost the fortunes of other retailers in the immediate area.
I hear plenty of objections whenever large chains move into downtown, but we’ve consistently seen that independent retailers are capable of prospering right alongside national retailers.
And local folks are less likely to have both the capital and the marketing savvy necessary to prosper over the long run in downtown’s larger storefronts. There are of course notable exceptions such as Levy Jewelers.
With the economy generally on the mend, we should see some of Broughton’s empty spots occupied before the end of the year. Don’t be surprised if a few more chains sign leases.
City Talk appears every Tuesday and Sunday. Bill Dawers can be reached via billdawers@comcast.net and http://www.billdawers.com. Send mail to 10 East 32nd St., Savannah, GA 31401.