New soul food restaurant 'Stonetown' to open in downtown Cleveland near East 4th in January

CLEVELAND - A new soul food restaurant with a familiar owner will soon open in downtown Cleveland.

“Stonetown,” as it will be named, is owned by Soul Republic Restaurant Group and will occupy the space vacated by Nexus Café and Coffeehouse on Prospect, which closed its doors in October.

At 627 Prospect, the restaurant will be housed in the 668 Euclid Avenue apartment building owned by K&D Group.

Soul Republic told NewsChannel5 that Stonetown will be a spin-off of past and present places the company has owned and operated.

“People should expect the food to be very similar to Zanzibar's menu, but we have some new items, new versions of current items, and some of the same favorites,” said a company representative via email. “We will also be piggy-backing on Jezebels Bayou orders of fresh seafood from Louisiana on a couple of items.”

But the owners said the new place will offer a more casual environment and cheaper prices. Appetizers will average about $6-$8, entrees $12-$15 and desserts $4-$6.

The restaurant is expected to open in January and will serve lunch and dinner daily, as well as brunch on the weekends starting at 10 a.m.

K&D’s leasing office told NewsChannel5 that not much remodeling needs to be done to get the space ready for the new business, but Stonetown will not occupy the entire space that Nexus had – the back part is being separated out for other leasing options.

The leasing office also said Soul Republic chose the Gateway District location over a spot in the Warehouse District. The 627 Prospect space is just down the street from East 4th Street – one of the city’s most prominent downtown entertainment districts – and near even closer to the space that will soon host a downtown edition of “Red, the Steakhouse.”

K&D thinks Stonetown is a good fit for the space, and will attract people from all over the area.

And the hope is that it won’t see the same fate the previous businesses there had. Nexus Café was only open for six months before it shut down. Prior to that, a golf-centered sports bar “Caddyshack” closed within two years of opening.

On the other side of East 4th -- in the 200 block of Euclid Avenue just west of the House of Blues, construction is well under way on a new J. Gumbo's and Chipotle. Both are expected to open in the first quarter of 2013.