A new outdoor dining hub is set to open just a few blocks from downtown Gainesville this weekend.
4th Ave Food Park, located at 409 SW Fourth Ave, will celebrate its grand opening Saturday at 7 a.m. Local businesses such as Opus Coffee, Humble Wood Fire, Fehrenbacher’s Artisan Sausage, Sublime Tacos and BakerBaker will be permanent vendors at the recently finished park, which has been open for four years through construction. This is the first time customers will be able to enjoy the vendors in a completed space.
Local artists and groups such as Ben Derrico Music, The Front Porch Backsteppers and Ricky Kendall will perform at the park throughout the day, said Sen Khiez, the owner of Sublime Tacos.
One of the centerpieces of the food park is a vintage Airstream trailer where Opus Coffee will operate out of, said Tim Larson, who is a co-owner of both the food park and the coffee business with his brother Bret Larson. The trailer has traveled to Canada, Mexico, Panama and more. Its new location in the food park will feature a drink menu inspired by its past travels.
Baked good from BakerBaker will also be sold from the coffee shop’s trailer, said the bakery’s owner Amanda Bowers. Those who attend the grand opening from 2-4 p.m. can decorate cookies shaped like the Airstream trailer.
BakerBaker will also sell specialty and experimental pastries that can only be found at the Airstream. She wouldn’t say what they are.
”I will let them be a surprise,” Bowers said.
Opus Coffee is one of Baylee Carroll’s favorite places to grab a cup of coffee in town. The 22-year-old UF agricultural education and communication junior said she hopes she can attend the grand opening.
Carroll said she and her husband also go to Sublime Tacos often. It’s just a block away from their house.
“Our go-to order is the beef burrito all the way with chips on the side,” Carroll said.
The now completed food park has been a journey for nearly four years in the making. It’s almost unrecognizable, Tim Larson said.
“We wanted something that was a destination spot,” Tim Larson said.
Contact Sarah Mandile at smandile@alligator.org. Follow her on Twitter @MandileSarah.
