Like worker ants building an ant hill, construction crews are pouring over a prominent building in downtown Leesburg as they endeavor to turn a former antiques shop into a new restaurant.
We’re talking about the spot at 102 South King Street that used to be the Black Shutter antiques store. That’s at the busy corner of South King and Loudoun Street.
The Burn first told readers about details for the new restaurant more than a year ago — in May 2023. You can see that story here.
Work started months ago on renovating both the interior of the building as well as the rear exterior where — according to permits — a 400 s.f. addition is being added.
The original plans called for a large bar on the main floor as well as two dining rooms on the first floor, plus several outdoor patios. Upstairs, there would be more dining rooms as well as outdoor dining on a large balcony.
While its possible plans have changed over the past year, they were initially planning seating for at least 250 guests or more in roughly 8,300 s.f. of space on the two floors. That’s a big restaurant for downtown Leesburg.
According to online sources, the historic building where the restaurant is going is known as the Thompson-Plaster House and was built in 1899. The red brick structure with prominent black shutters was constructed in the Georgian Revival style.
And just as the previous tenant was the Black Shutter antiques shop, one of the LLCs involved in the new restaurant is also named Black Shutter. No word yet if the new restaurant will incorporate the name as well.
We’ve reached out to people involved and we’re eagerly waiting for the principals in the project to be ready to share more details about their vision and plans.