Granada Boulevard's Fall Is Happening Inside Buildings It Already Had

"It's just like a cafe on Bourbon Street," Brett Blanchard told the Ormond Beach Observer in August. "The feel, the music, the vibe."

The cafe he was describing, New Orleans Original Creole/Cajun Cafe, opened on Aug. 29 at 188 E. Granada Blvd., in the building that used to be Gili's Kitchen. Most of the fall news on Granada Boulevard follows the same pattern. A restaurant building has a new kitchen. A longtime pub turned its front room into a brewhouse. A restored downtown landmark is dark while its owner plans a refresh. A riverfront estate is carrying the arts calendar. Very little on Granada this fall is new construction. What has changed is who is inside the buildings and what they are doing there.

A French Quarter Menu in the Gili's Kitchen Building

The Observer's opening report listed shrimp po'boys, charbroiled oysters, beignets, sno-balls and king cakes as the dishes the Blanchard family planned to bring to East Granada. The menu on the cafe's own site also lists breakfast sandwiches and pralines.

The hours matter more than the menu for planning a visit. Hometown News lists the cafe as open from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. For five days a week, that makes it a breakfast and lunch stop near the river end of Granada. Dinner is a Friday and Saturday option. Anyone planning beignets after an evening at The Casements midweek will find the kitchen closed by then.

Fletcher's Put Its Brewery in the Front Room

At 393 W. Granada Blvd., Fletcher's has a new name. On Oct. 2, owner Bill Fletcher told the Observer the restaurant is now Fletcher's Irish Brewery & Scratch Kitchen. The new name follows a physical change that happened quietly almost a year ago.

Fletcher's started brewing about five years ago, when it opened a second location in Holly Hill. When that lease came up, Fletcher moved the brewing to Ormond in December 2025. He pointed to rising costs for business owners and a wish to consolidate on home turf. Finding room was the hard part. The 5,000-square-foot restaurant had some spare space at the front near the bar, so the brewhouse went there.

"Instead of stretching my time over two locations, let's focus on one and make that one a rock star."

On a typical day, the restaurant pours 18 to 22 of its own craft beers, all brewed a few feet from the bar. With guest brands included, Fletcher estimates the full menu at more than 60 beers. Brewmaster Robre Shash, who has been with Fletcher's for three years, says a typical brew day takes him about seven hours. He also says Ormond customers have been more open to craft beer since the move. Closing Holly Hill made the Granada location larger in what it does without adding a square foot.

West Granada Adds a Reason to Stay Past Dinner

Farther west, Cue Note Billiard Room at 1140 W. Granada Blvd. was already serving soft-opening customers before its grand opening and ribbon cutting on Sept. 3. The Observer reported 15 pool tables, golf simulators, darts, a full restaurant menu and a liquor bar. Combined with the rebranded brewery a few blocks east, West Granada now has two evening spots built for staying a while, one centered on the tap list and one on the tables.

A nearby business is a reminder that some things are holding steady. Peach Valley Cafe served its last customers at its Port Orange location, 3813 S. Nova Road, on Sept. 29. The Daytona Beach News-Journal reported that the chain's Ormond location at 1185 W. Granada Blvd. is still open. The Granada breakfast spot is unaffected.

The Rose Villa Corner Is Waiting on Its Owner's Refresh

Downtown, the biggest change this fall is a closure. Rose Villa Southern Table and Bar, at 43 W. Granada Blvd., closed on Friday, Aug. 28. Downtown redeveloper Bill Jones restored the historic building and still owns it. The restaurant was run by a separate operator under a lease with Jones's company. Jones told the Observer the closure came from a decision by that operator.

Jones described the property's place in his downtown plans this way:

"'The Rose' has been an important part of my dream to give rebirth to the grand historic buildings of downtown Ormond Beach."

He said he was "immediately beginning a refreshing of the building to bring it back to the high standards that the public came to know and respect." No new operator or reopening date has been announced. A News-Journal gallery last updated Sept. 21 still listed the restaurant as temporarily closed. For now, the building is the clearest example of the pattern on Granada this fall. The structure has already been restored, and what happens next depends on who moves in.

The Riverfront Carries the Calendar

While the restaurant buildings change hands, the weekends are anchored by places that are not changing at all. The Casements, at 25 Riverside Drive according to the city, holds the Ormond Beach Art Guild's fall exhibit from Oct. 1 to Oct. 29. Ten days later, its grounds host the seventh annual Ormond Beach Beer Festival. Most of the rest of the fall schedule happens along the Halifax or at the Ormond Beach Performing Arts Center on North U.S. 1.

Friday, Nov. 6 is the night to plan around. The free outdoor movie at Rockefeller Gardens starts half an hour before the curtain goes up on Fiddler at the Performing Arts Center, so households with different tastes can split up for the evening. The October Movies on the Halifax screening of E.T., set for Oct. 2, was postponed because of weather, according to the Observer's Oct. 1 event update.

The Art Walk is Ormond Beach MainStreet's monthly event, held on the first Saturday of each month at 128 W. Granada Blvd. Following that pattern, the walk after Oct. 3 falls on Nov. 7. The city's Senior Games cover a wide range of events, including basketball shooting, bowling, golf, pickleball, powerlifting, shuffleboard, swimming, table tennis, tennis, and track and field. Ormond Beach MainStreet describes Riverfest as free to attend with free parking. Its event page has not been fully refreshed for this year, so check entertainment and vendor details closer to Thanksgiving week.

Two Road Notices Worth Knowing Before the Weekend

The city has scheduled nighttime lane closures on South Halifax Drive between Ormond Parkway and Valencia Drive for sewer repairs. The work runs from 7 p.m. to 6 a.m., Monday, Oct. 5 through Thursday, Oct. 8, and ends two days before the beer festival at The Casements.

The Main Trail Bridge repair project is still at the procurement stage. The city calendar lists a pre-bid meeting on Oct. 21 and a bid opening on Nov. 2 at 2 p.m. These are bidding milestones, not a construction start, and no closure dates for the bridge have been published.

Every change on Granada this fall comes down to how a building's space is used, whether that is a new tenant in the Gili's Kitchen building or a brewhouse in Fletcher's front room. If you own a rental in Ormond Beach and want to know how changes like these around your street affect what it should rent for, Christine Malpica Sullivan and the Evolve Property Group team can review it with local knowledge and clear numbers. Get a Free Rental Analysis.