Tompkins Hall Adds Coffee, Beer, French Rotisserie to Roster

Erik Danielson
The massive Tompkins Hall project in Optimist Park has big plans. You can see how close it is to uptown in this shot from our Spring Fashion Preview in 2017.

Tompkins Hall, a 125-year-old textile mill on the edge of uptown, has three tenants confirmed for its new life as a hub for retail and food. Fonta Flora Brewery, Aix Rotisserie, and Undercurrent Coffee will occupy spots in the nearly 135,000-square-foot project. The site says it will have rolling openings that will begin late this year, with a grand opening event eyed for the first quarter of 2019. (You may remember the mill as the backdrop for our 2017 Spring Fashion Preview.)

Fonta Flora Brewery takes a 2,400-square-foot spot indoors, with 5,000 square feet of lawn and patio access. The Morganton-founded brewery was featured in an Around Towns story in 2015, two years after it had opened. The French rotisserie, from the owners behind Aix En Provence, occupies a 500-square-foot market stall. This follows the recent opening of the group's new restaurant in Waxhaw, which took the place of Heritage Food & Drink. Finally, Undercurrent Coffee takes a similarly sized spot as Aix Rotisserie, as a full-service coffee bar.

The restoration of Tompkins Hall has been led by Charlotte's White Point Partners and the Atlanta-based Paces Properties. The plan is to have six "anchor restaurants and bars," 19 stalls in the Food Hall, and retail space. Last year, Duke Energy signed a lease for an office space, which will house hundreds of its employees.

Categories: Food + Drink