“We expanded the Rooster space several times over the years,” says Dave Bailey of the crepes and sandwiches restaurant he opened with his wife Kara 15 years ago downtown at 1104 Locust. “Unfortunately, certain parts of it—like storage space and the closet-sized kitchen—did not grow.”
What started out as a 21-seat cafe grew to 190 seats over the years, Dave Bailey says, exacerbating the prep and production issues, “but we really wanted to keep Rooster in the neighborhood, which led us to investigate the Dubliner (1025 Washington), which was just over 500 feet away.”
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Bailey cites higher ceilings, a strong street presence, more seating, and a 60-seat second floor mezzanine (which can be used for overflow seating as well as private events), as additional reasons for the move. A Facebook post from the Baileys states that “we’ve been working on the decor to turn the old Dubliner, an iconic (and understandably dark) pub, to a bright and cheerful brunch spot.”
Rooster is part of Baileys’ Restaurants, which includes Baileys’ Chocolate Bar, Bailey’s Range, Bridge Tap House, Small Batch, POP, Wing Ding Dong (a ghost kitchen), as well as event venues Willow and Slate. (A second Bailey’s Range is slated to open this fall in a former service station at 4175 Shaw.)
The Baileys plan to close the flagship Rooster and open the new location during the same week in mid-November. “Our goal is to be all moved in by Rooster’s 15th anniversary which is on November 20,” Dave Bailey says.
