WARWICK – Narragansett Beer. The Spring House Hotel on Block Island. Italian food on Federal Hill.
They're all quintessential Rhode Island icons that call to mind good times in the Ocean State.
And they're all going to be the inspiration for restaurants at Rhode Island T.F. Green International Airport if Francesco Balli has his way.
Balli is a founder of Grove Bay Hospital Group , a Miami company that runs restaurants there, as well as concessions at four airports: Green, Miami International, Raleigh-Durham International and Seattle-Tacoma International.
How Grove Bay got involved in food service at T.F. Green
Grove Bay started operations at T.F. Green in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. One company had planned to wrap up its run at the airport and hand off to another in early 2020 when the world shut down, especially air travel. The new company gave up, and in June 2020 the Rhode Island Airport Corporation looked for someone to run the food-service operations in the Bruce Sundlun Terminal. Grove Bay took over in November of that year, running the Wolfgang Puck restaurant and Providence Provisions Kitchen & Bar.
With Balli forecasting that Green will get back to its pre-pandemic passenger volume next year, Grove Bay is looking to expand its offerings.
It will run three restaurants in the terminal, two Dunkin' shops, a bar and the food court, which will include a stand called Half Moon Empanadas, which is set to open in a month.
The three restaurants will all have distinctly Rhode Island themes.
Brewery tavern will be first, opening ahead of next summer
Narragansett Kitchen & Bar will include signage drawn from the more-than-century-old beer brand and will have a tavern-style menu featuring burgers and steak. Of course, it will serve Narragansett Beer, along with other brews. Construction is expected to begin this fall with an opening before next summer.
The other restaurants, Federal Hill Italian Eatery and Spring House Seafood Grill are not as far along in the planning process, with target opening dates not yet scheduled, though they are expected sometime in 2025 or 2026.
All of the concessions, including the three new restaurants, will be located after the Transportation Security Administration security checkpoint, so they will only be available to ticketed passengers.
Balli said that because Green is not a hub where travelers change to connecting flights, most of his customers will be departing passengers who get to the airport early and want to grab a bite before their flight. Arriving passengers tend to want to collect their baggage and hurry off to wherever they're headed in the Rhode Island area.
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: T.F. Green to get 3 new restaurants. First up: Narragansett Beer-themed tavern
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