HENRICO, Va. — Applebee’s is out and an up-and-coming fast casual chain is in as the churn of the Short Pump restaurant scene rolls on.
Cava Grill, a Washington, D.C.-based Mediterranean restaurant brand, is preparing to open in the recently shuttered Applebee’s Bar & Grill location at 11780 W. Broad St.
Cava Grill spokeswoman Nikki Rappaport confirmed that the Short Pump location would join another Cava outpost in the works at 810 W. Grace St. near VCU, in a 3,600-square-foot storefront recently vacated by Pie Five Pizza Co. The restaurants will mark the company’s first foray into the Richmond market.
The Short Pump Applebee’s was shut down last weekend by Herndon-based Potomac Family Dining Group, the company that owns Applebee’s locations across metro Richmond and much of the Mid-Atlantic.
The Short Pump location is no longer listed on the dining group’s website and its Facebook page has been deleted.
A sign on the door Monday thanked customers for their patronage, and encouraged its Short Pump clientele to visit its Glen Allen location at 9601 W. Broad St.
Multiple calls to Potomac Family Dining were not returned Monday or Tuesday.
Built in 2004, the 6,700-square-foot former Applebee’s sits on a 1.8-acre outparcel near an entryway to Short Pump Town Center. The land is owned by Short Pump Town Center LLC, the group that owns the mall.
Rappaport said Cava Grill plans to completely overhaul the former Applebee’s, giving it a sleek remodel inside and out.
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