A longtime restaurant on downtown Chattanooga's waterfront and an adjacent cocktail bar are closing later this month.
The Blue Plate, which opened in 2006 at 191 Chestnut St. across from the Tennessee Aquarium, and ROBAR, which debuted in adjacent space in 2015, will close Feb. 28, according to owner-operator RAG Hospitality.
RAG Hospitality decided not to renew the lease for the riverfront locations, which was set to expire in April, the company said.
Rob Gentry, the company's president, said the space was "a wonderful home to us for 15 years and we've had a great run thanks to the amazing support from this community."
"It's hard to leave a concept you've nurtured for this long, but the time feels right," Gentry said. "The fact that our lease was up for renewal in the current economic climate made us think about the future in new ways."
(Read more: Mojo Burrito to close in St. Elmo; some Red Bank employees quit)
Gentry said the last 12 months have been tough, but not all the impacts to the business have been negative.
"We are bullish about the restaurant industry and love Chattanooga, so it's a good time for us to explore some new ideas," he said.
Both The Blue Plate and ROBAR remain open for business through Feb. 28, the company said. The hours of operation for The Blue Plate are Tuesday-Saturday 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Sunday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. The hours at ROBAR are Thursday from 5 p.m. to 10:15 p.m. and Friday through Saturday 5 p.m. to last call.
While the pandemic has been tough on restaurants, downtown's waterfront already had lost some of its appeal.
In late 2019, downtown nonprofit redevelopment group River City Co. kicked off an effort to re-energize the waterfront district.
Planners said this week they're aiming for late spring or early summer to finally unveil a road map to re-energize the area after the effort was delayed due to the pandemic.
(Read more: Chattanooga businesses that closed in 2020 and others that evolved and hung on.)
Next month, the ONE Riverfront initiative will hold a series of online roundtable meetings to share ideas expressed so far to boost the waterfront district and to hear feedback.
Emily Mack, president and CEO of River City Co., said the goal of ONE Riverfront is to develop a greater sense of a place for Chattanoogans to connect and enjoy through programming and activation.
"We have heard many great ideas so far and want to continue the conversation to further explore all that is possible for the space," she said.
Contact Mike Pare at mpare@timesfreepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @MikePareTFP.