The former owner of J Restaurant Bar, which closed last year after it was displaced from its longtime home in Hartford, is opening a new and expanded venue in the Colt Gateway complex.
Jordan Dikegoros said he plans to complete his acquisition on Thursday of the Thomas Hooker Brewery at Colt and Hooker Live spaces in the Colt Building at 140 Huyshope Ave.
Dikegoros is buying them from Thomas Hooker Brewery, whose president, Curt Cameron, he described as a friend.
“I mean, this is like a real natural fit for both of us,” Dikegoros said. “His business has done really well there; he just wants to shift his focus on some other stuff. And this is a great opportunity for us. We wanted to get back into Hartford, and this is the perfect fit.”
Cameron said the taproom was profitable, but Hooker Brewery has pivoted its focus from primarily beer to CBD hemp-derived THC seltzer production, in response to a market trend of declining craft beer sales.
“It allows us to take some chips off the table and focus on our manufacturing, and it allows Jordan to get back into the game, you know, sort of reopen after he sold his restaurant,” Cameron said.
Cameron said about 75% of Hooker Brewery’s business is now seltzer sales.
“That segment of the market is growing like crazy, and we’re expanding to multiple states,” he said, adding that the company recently invested in a new $1 million canning line at its Bloomfield facility.
Under Dikegoros’ ownership, the taproom will be renamed J Bar. It’s expected to open next week.
It will offer an expanded drink menu – including Hooker beers – along with food, some of which will be familiar to patrons of the former J Restaurant and Bar.
J Bar will have seating for about 80 people, along with an outdoor patio and a private room with seating for another 60 patrons.
“We’re going to switch it up and offer more meals available to people, full dinners, lunches,” Dikegoros said. “And our plan is to build on it over the summer, expand the hours, and then try to bring some of the features of J Restaurant back, you know, our delivery service to the hospital and things of that nature.”
It’s not just a reopening of J Restaurant Bar – it’s the beginning of a new concept, with expanded capabilities, Dikegoros said.
The new location is much larger than the previous restaurant, and the event space provides new business opportunities.
Hooker Live, the event space, has a stage and a total capacity of 323 people. It will be renamed J Under the Dome.
Dikegoros said he plans to use the space for hosting weddings, corporate meetings, holiday parties, comedy shows and small musical performances.
A “dueling pianos” event scheduled for Saturday night will take place at the venue, whether or not it’s still owned by Hooker Brewery, Dikegoros said.
Dikegoros plans to move his catering business to the space and will install new equipment as part of a kitchen expansion.
“We’re putting in a new hood that’s going to offer us the ability to put out full blown catered functions there,” Dikegoros said. “Once we get that in there, we’ll be able to pretty much put out any type of food we want.”
He doesn’t expect any downtime while the renovations occur, and offered jobs to all current employees.
“The changes we’re going to make will be subtle,” Dikegoros said. “We’re not doing any drastic changes to the space. … We’ll create a somewhat different vibe, but we’re not looking to do a major facelift on it, or anything to that nature.”
Dikegoros said the location is ideal: near the Colt Gateway apartments and Trinity Health Stadium, with plenty of parking available. He said he’s working with the city to look at ways to open up the area to the Connecticut River.
J Restaurant Bar was a fixture in Hartford for 54 years in its former location at 297 Washington St. The restaurant was demolished to make space for Connecticut Children’s Medical Center’s new parking garage, which is currently under construction.
Before J Restaurant Bar closed last year, Dikegoros promised he’d reopen as soon as an opportunity arose.
“We looked everywhere, we looked at so many other locations, and nothing felt right,” Dikegoros said. “This is the first one that felt like the perfect fit for us. It fits all of our needs.”
Larry Dooley, managing partner of CG Management Co., which co-owns Colt Gateway with Chevron TCI, thanked Hooker Brewery for its years on the property.
“We are thrilled about J Bar at Colt’s commitment to Colt Gateway and look forward to an exciting future filled with outstanding food and drink under their stewardship,” Dooley said. “This transition ensures that Colt Gateway will remain a vibrant hub for our community.”
