Philadelphia — Architetra p.c., an architectural firm based in Paoli, Pa., has unveiled its design concept for Ventnor Burger Bar, a new restaurant and bar that shares a roof with the fully-gutted and renovated Ventnor Square Theater in Ventnor, N.J.
Jersey Cape Partners has selected Architetra to design the Ventnor Square Theater restaurant because of a previous positive collaboration on Stewart’s Root Beer, an oceanfront, two-story franchise restaurant that opened on the Wildwood Boardwalk in New Jersey in 2007.
Artist Julie Loren Webb has been commissioned to design the painting of the interior of the restaurant as if it existed in the 1920s speakeasy era, composed in oil medium. The composition contains patrons dancing, talking and eating — all dressed in 1920s fashion and painted in the style of classical realism. On the wall within the painting, the painting itself is clearly recognizable and contains people in the same poses but dressed according to contemporary fashion and painted in a more abstract style: achieving a meta-reality atmosphere and feeling.
The original Art Deco styled single screen theater was opened in 1922 by New Jersey Shore movie theater pioneers the Franks of Family Entertainment Group. After decades of disrepair and the Franks filed for bankruptcy, the theater was purchased by developers and business partners Clint Bunting, Brett Denafo and Scot Kauffman.
In 2018, Jersey Cape Partners — entrepreneurs and innovators in amusement, restaurant and retail development — were brought in to develop the new, yet to be named, Ventnor Square Theater restaurant. This followed Jersey Cape Partners’ initial successful foray into the dine-in theater concept with the Harbor Burger Bar, which is located in the adjoining, newly renovated Harbor Square Theatre in Stone Harbor, N.J.
Ventnor Square Theater’s mainstage for live events will seat close to 300 people in traditional theater seats and a stadium seating atmosphere. Two smaller, 30-40 seat theaters will show movies and include fully reclining chairs, following the trend towards a more luxurious cinema experience. A lounge off the main restaurant has been named “Nucky’s Lounge”, a playful reference to Prohibition Era figure, Enoch “Nucky” Johnson. Moviegoers can choose to dine before or after the movie in the main restaurant, take their food into the movie theater, or view and dine from the balcony counter/bar, which is accessible off the main dining room.
The full-service, family-friendly Ventnor Square Theater casual restaurant and bar will seat 120 diners and will be open to the public regardless of whether they are going to the movies. The 4,600-square-foot theater and new restaurant are planned to open in spring 2020.
Architetra, p.c. is a full-service architectural firm with project experience covering a broad range of commercial and residential project types including restaurant, retail, educational, industrial, automotive, corporate, gaming and horse racetracks, custom homes, additions, multifamily residential and housing developments. For more information, email [email protected].
SOURCE: Architetra, p.c.