Four months after opening Andaz Indian Restaurant, owner Parvesh Khirbat is hungry for a new venture.
About three months ago, the 31-year-old purchased the empty space once home to Jolie Catering on University Avenue. He’s been remodeling the space to transform it into a banquet venue. Khirbat said he plans to schedule events from weddings and holiday dinners to corporate events and Sweet 16 parties. He expects it to be open by Thanksgiving.
“We’re just a couple (steps) away,” he said.
As no event is complete without dancing, Khirbat said the new space will give customers options when setting up events. The space can accommodate about 200 seats without a dance floor or 150 seats to give patrons the opportunity to cut the rug.
Khirbat said Andaz will provide most of the catering, but it’s also willing to outsource. He said his cooks can prepare Italian, Mexican, Indian, Chinese and American cuisine.
“We have a pretty diverse staff in the kitchen,” he said. “It makes my job much easier.”
Caue Ferreira, a 24-year-old UF chemistry graduate student, has dined at Andaz before and said he can see himself attending the new space when it opens.
“I don’t have any planned events, but if they bring in live music, I’ll be there,” he said.
Despite the collaboration with Andaz restaurant, Khirbat said he is going to keep the original name, Jolie.
“It’s been there for about the last 15 years in Gainesville,” he said. “I want to preserve the history.”
Although such a project can be overwhelming, Khirbat said he’s glad to bring more diversity to the community.
“At first, I was a little hesitant to take on a project this big,” he said. “But it’s next door, it’s convenient, and this is what I’ve been wanting to do for a long time.”
A version of this story ran on page 8 on 11/18/2013 under the headline "Jolie Catering to become event space with new management"
