Fast-casual restaurant B.Good set to make its mark on Uptown

[Agenda story: Rhino Market is opening a second location Uptown]

Now we have learned of the second of three tenants — Boston-based chain “B.Good.” The first Charlotte location is set to take one of the three spots on Church Street overlooking Third Ward, according to public records.

“We couldn’t be more excited to continue the growth of our brand with our newest unit in Uptown,” B.Good strategic advisor James Quackenbush said. He hinted that more locations could be in the works. “We have identified several key market entry points for our brand with Tryon being the first to market.”

“B.Good will bring variety and quality to the exploding Third Ward restaurant and social scene,” said Legacy Real Estate Advisors principal Adam Williams, who brokered the deal. “We are counting the days until we can get quality, farm to table food in a quick setting.”

Haven’t heard of B.Good?

B.Good bills itself as “real.food.fast” — yes, they have a thing for lowercase — and my initial perception of the place was “just another hipster/kale salad place that claims to be fresh and local, ho hum.” But after a bit more research it seemed to be a bit more.

Sure, it does give off a hipster vibe and they do have kale salads, but they also have burger and fries. Very odd, but great.

Furthermore, on their website you can see what farms supply their particular restaurants. It seems like they are going for a “fast food” vibe where you don’t feel like you just gained 10 pounds and lost 10 years of life because of it. Fine by me.

Photo by b.good via Facebook

My one hope is they don’t have Just Fresh and Energy Cafe hours: closed by 2 or 3 p.m. and closed on weekends. That drives me nuts and if we are really going to evolve as a city we have to move beyond banker lunch hours.

While this will definitely be very popular with that banker lunch crowd, it has enormous potential to hit those looking for a quick but healthy(ish) dinner and has a huge population base there in Third Ward.

B.good locations are all over the Northeast and have recently moved to the North Carolina market via Raleigh. The company has two locations there now, Quackenbush said, and is looking at more. It’s nice to see them continue their expansion here in Charlotte.

The renovations will begin soon(ish) and carry into next year. My guess is this will open about a year from now. So while it’s far off, it’s definitely something to look forward to and a further enhancement of Third Ward.