East End Market Welcomes The Neighbors

Additional Retail Space, Cocktail Lounge, and Chef's Table To Open Fall 2021.
Photo: Official

Since it opened in November 2013, the East End Market in Orlando’s Audubon Park Garden District hasn’t undergone any major alterations. That will soon change thanks to The Neighbors, the brainchild of Freehand Goods’ Jacob Zepf, who imagined a shopping venue for local makers and artisans to sell their wares without the high prices of renting space elsewhere.

Sign up now to get our Daily Breaking News Alerts

Opt out at anytime

“At East End, you’re not going to have to mortgage your home to afford it, and you have the convenience of a permanent space without packing up a truck every night,” said East End Market Owner John Rife.

Due to the pandemic, East End’s second floor event space, once booked for weddings and other events, saw a lull in activity.

When Zepf’s initial location for The Neighbors fell through, Rife suggested a redesign of the space.

“COVID had slowed down considerably any event business we had, so we decided to create more space for food and retail vendors,” he said.

The Neighbors will feature 30 to 40 local retailers, as well as a cocktail lounge and rotating chef’s table called Domu Lab, coined after East End Market restaurant Domu by Sonny Nguyen.

Nguyen, along with brothers Johnny and Jimmy Tung, came up with the concept as a way to help new culinary faces put their food out to the public before opening their own restaurants.

“It will be a rotating showcase of chefs, to give them enough of a track record to attract investors,” said Rife. “We’re trying to help people bridge that gap.”

The lounge will serve wine, beer and cocktails, allowing guests to grab a drink, enjoy dinner, and shop the retail locations in one convenient stop. The Neighbors expects to open in Fall 2021.

Shanna Sloyer-Martin

Shanna Sloyer-Martin

Shanna Sloyer-Martin is a freelance writer in the Midwest with 20 years experience in magazine, newspaper, and digital marketing and blogging.
Shanna Sloyer-Martin

Shanna Sloyer-Martin

Shanna Sloyer-Martin is a freelance writer in the Midwest with 20 years experience in magazine, newspaper, and digital marketing and blogging.
0 0 votes
Article Rating
Subscribe
Notify of
guest

0 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments

Related Posts

Pin It on Pinterest

Search