New restaurant coming to South Lincoln

The restaurant site in South Lincoln will have a third incarnation after AKA Bistro and Lincoln Kitchen.

A trio of owner-operators have signed a lease for the former Lincoln Kitchen/AKA Bistro restaurant site, with an opening planned for the first quarter of 2019.

Lindsey Parker of Concord, one of the co-owners, declined to reveal what the new team is planning to name the new eatery but said it would serve dinner seven days a week and brunch on Saturday and Sunday.

“The food will be contemporary American with a focus on purity, simplicity and freshness, taking advantage of the area’s seasonal produce… the restaurant will be a place to get honest and straightforward food and drink that is comfortable and affordable,” she said in an email late last week.

Parker’s partners are Sudbury residents Tom Fosnot, who will be the primary chef, and Ruth-Anne Adams, who will be in charge of the front-of-house staff and general operations (Parker said she herself will handle the “business and creative side of the launch”). The Sudbury pair has more than 40 years of experience in the restaurant and hospitality industry, said Parker, who met them about 18 months ago when their paths crossed while looking at restaurant spaces in the area. 

Fosnot has been executive chef at the Gibbet Hill Grill in Groton for more than eight years. Adams—also a trained chef who has more recently worked on the business side of restaurants—will be returning to hospitality and cooking, said Parker, whose background is in investments.

The trio plans to bring “not just a new restaurant, but a new restaurant experience” to Lincoln, Parker said in an interview on Tuesday. “Given the location and size, this is perfect for owner-operators who will be on site and behind the stove.”

The space “will also allow for interests in cooking classes, catering and take-out,” she added.

Asked what the new eatery can offer to maximize its chances of success in a site where two other restaurants have had to shut their doors (the latest after only 15 months of operation), Parker cited her team’s “kitchen talent” and “a more comfortable environment.”

Though details have not been worked out, the group hopes to do some events leading up to the opening that will “give the community a better sense of the menu as well as its style,” she said.