Restaurant on the Move
Blue Mesa Grill celebrates 25 years in Addison with a new location
After 25 years in the Village on the Parkway in Addison, Blue Mesa Grill will change its address this summer. The flagship restaurant for this small Southwestern chain is moving next-door to Mi Piaci, in the space at 14854 Montfort Dr., which was once the ill-fated Ounce steakhouse and before that, the highly mounted La Valentina de Mexico.
"We're already under construction, and we'll open in August," says Liz Baron, who owns Blue Mesa with her husband, Jim. "We were one of the original tenants at Village on the Parkway. We weathered the storm of that center and did very well for many years when there was no anchor."
"We were one of the original tenants at Village on the Parkway," says owner Liz Baron. "We weathered the storm of that center."
Since Blue Mesa opened in 1988, the Village on the Parkway has gone through many ownerships. Last year, the center was acquired by a company called Retail Connection, which has negotiated to put in a new AMC movie theater as well as a Whole Foods, set to open in July in the old Bed Bath & Beyond space.
Daniel Fuller, who was at a conference and unavailable for comment, told the Advocate that they want more restaurants in the nearly dormant center. He touted Gloria's but did not include Blue Mesa in his vision.
"Our lease was ending, and at first it seemed like they were going to offer us a lease," Baron says. "But time kept passing, and they kept not offering us a new lease."
Seeing the writing on the wall, they found a new location and a silver lining.
"This coincides with our 25th year in business, and we'll have a big 25th anniversary celebration with the opening of the new space," Baron says. "We're very excited about it. It's a shot in the arm that will be good for us."
