A round-up of openings, closings, and other news about West Hartford businesses.

Business Buzz is sponsored by NBT Bank, and we are very thankful for their support!

By Ronni Newton

I hope all who celebrate had a Happy Easter on Sunday, and that those who celebrate have been having a Happy Passover as well!

The weather has been a been wacky this past week – which I guess is typical for this time of year. Many restaurants have started setting up their patios, which were getting some good use on Friday and Saturday after a very cold Thursday. As I write this its mid-day on Easter Sunday, and it’s cold and raw and just started pouring rain. Not quite the day for Easter morning egg hunts or outdoor brunch.

I am very happy that the grass greening up, the forsythia and even some magnolia trees are starting to bloom, and the daffodils along my driveway are now in full bloom.

I’ve recovered from the shock of last weekend’s mens basketball game, and was so excited for Saturday night’s win over Illinois. My lucky Shamrock socks are still working their magic (I didn’t wear them for the Duke vs. UConn game because I was trying to remain objective) and I’ll be wearing them Monday night.

Last week started off with the Yard Goats food showcase at Dunkin’ Park. I always enjoy this fun media event, and while I won’t necessarily be ordering the Cinnamon Bun Burger on a regular basis, it was yummy and a great juxtaposition of sweet and savory. And I would definitely share the Fry-Cuterie with someone (or more appropriately, a few people). You can read the full story about this year’s ballpark fare here.

Tuesday night I attended the (nearly 5-hour) West Hartford Board of Education meeting, where the 2026-27 budget was adopted, after reductions totalling more than $1.3 million. That budget will now be incorporated into the overall general fund budget, which the Town Council will adopt on April 20.

Ted and I ventured out of West Hartford for dinner with our friends Jeannette and Dan Dardenne on Friday night. Because Jeannette runs Eat in Connecticut, she’s way more familiar than I am with restaurants and chefs outside our local enclave, and we had an amazing dinner, and some great cocktails, at Tavern on State in New Haven. Below are just a few photos of our dinner.

Saturday night’s dinner was pizza from Joey’s during the UConn vs. Illinois game, which we watched with my sister and her boyfriend. We started devouring the pizzas before I remembered to take any photos, so I had to take some closeups to hide the missing pieces.

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If you have information to share about local businesses, please provide details in the comments or email Ronni Newton at [email protected].

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Here’s this week’s Buzz:

• Leasing will soon begin for Greyson West, the apartments being developed at the former Hoffman Summerwood property at 160 Simsbury Road, where renovation is well underway. The Town Council approved the conversion of the property to non-age-restricted housing last June, and the property was officially sold to OP 160 Simsbury LLC for $17.5 million in November 2025. Demolition began in January 2026, Jeremy Browning, principal with Glastonbury-based Oceanport Realty Capital, told me in an interview last week, and they are working on the renovations of the interiors of the units. It’s currently a bevy of activity, with about 120-150 people on the job site. He said they are about 25% of the way through the project, which will be delivered in phases, and the re-siding, which is the majority of the exterior work, should be done in the next two or three weeks, followed by landscaping and paving. “We’re targeting early May for the first move-ins,” Browning said, and they hope to have all of the work completed by late July. The project doesn’t involve any structural changes at all, and for 105 of the 108 apartments the changes are solely interior upgrades of cabinets, flooring, appliances, fixtures, etc. The property is now being promoted on Apartments.com and Instagram, and the reaction has been “great,” said Property Manager Alexis Lewis. “There’s a lot of buzz around this coming to market,” she said. Browning said Greyson West will stand out in the West Hartford area not only because of its location in the north end of town. “I think what’s unique about Greyson West is the revival of this asset,” he said of the high-quality construction that of the property that was initially built as senior living in 2000. The three-story building has three elevators, which you wouldn’t find in construction today either, he said. “It’s a spectacular suburban location, really close to amenities,” he added. And there will be amenities on the property as well, including a pergola, cafe tables, outdoor kitchen, and a reflecting pool with benches, hammocks, and Adirondack chairs, and a separate dog walk area. The interior includes a club room, training kitchen, conference center, Java-Bar, game room, we-work area, wellness spa, fitness center, and library. Greyson West includes 84 one-bedroom, 18 two-bedroom, and six three-bedroom units. Rents will range from $2,400 to $4,500, according to Browning, but 20% of the units have also been set aside as affordable for those earning 80% of the Area Median Income (AMI) and will have lower rents. They had initially agreed to have 8% of the units affordable when approval was given by the Town Council, with the caveat that they were applying for funding through the Connecticut Housing Finance Corporation (CHFA) in order to be able to increase the number of affordable units through their Build for CT program – and securing that led to the increase to 20%, with rents set by CHFA. The affordable units will be spread throughout the building, and will be a mix of unit sizes, Browning said. For more information, visit the website greysonwesthartford.com.

• Angel Land (former buybuy Baby space at 1445 New Britain Avenue in The Corbin Collection) is having a sneak peek/soft launch on Monday afternoon, from 2-6 p.m.! The soft launch is free to attend and open to the general public with the purchase of Angel Land socks, and there is also a fee of $5 for use of the bumper cars, a spokesperson told me. The official opening date is TBA, but I’ll definitely report that as soon as it’s announced, and provide more information following the soft launch. According to the team. “Angel Land West Hartford is a thoughtfully-designed indoor play space for young children, built with both kids and parents in mind. Our West Hartford location focuses on clean, safe, and engaging play through sensory elements, soft structures, and intentional design details that encourage imagination and development. More than just a place to play, Angel Land is meant to feel like a welcoming, calm environment where families can spend time together, connect with other parents, and celebrate special moments from everyday visits to birthday parties!” Follow on Instagram (@angelland_wh) for updates.

• Bartlett Brainard is now under new ownership, and held an open house on Friday afternoon at their 75 Talcott Road offices to introduce new owner Scott Miller. He had retired after serving as CEO of a water treatment manufacturing company, and previously worked as regional manager for Clean Earth after spending 20 years with Loureiro Engineering and Construction, but decided he wasn’t ready to stop working and began looking for a business to purchase. Miller said he learned last fall that Cathy Yandow Davis was looking to sell the long-time family-owned company (she’s still working there) and he closed on the purchase the first week of March. Miller spent years coaching kids’ ice hockey and lacrosse, and was president of the board of the Plainville Food Pantry, and because his previous job involved worldwide travel, he missed the close connections. “What I like about the business is it’s community based,” Miller said, He has already joined the West Hartford Chamber of Commerce, and is really looking forward to getting involved in the community and launching volunteer efforts to assist people who can’t afford needed repairs. Bartlett Brainard provides a variety of home renovations services, including siding, windows, roofing, porch enclosures, awnings, gutters, and more. For more information, visit their website.

• Congratulations to Adam Greenberg (executive chef at Sparrow Pizza Bar in his hometown of West Hartford as well as the recently-opened Tacobarn in Newtown), who last week won the Guy Fieri-hosted competition “Flavortown Food Fight“! The show was filmed in front of a live audience on the “Flavortown” set a few hours outside San Francisco, and during the recording, Fieri gave Greenberg the opportunity to speak to his young son on camera. Greenberg won $20,000 and will appear on the show again this Wednesday, April 8, at 9 p.m. on the Food Network. The show is also available on HBO Max.

• Progress continues on the West Hartford Center Infrastructure Master Plan, which is now underway on Farmington Avenue and has extended to the east of Dale Street. This week, work is expected to begin on the other end of the north side of Farmington Avenue – between Chase Bank and Chipotle – but all businesses remain open and accessible. The updated schedule can be found here. There’s extensive progress underway on the new Animal Control facility on Brixton Street, and I also checked on the construction on the east side of the former UConn campus (nothing happening yet on the west side), where the Residences at Heritage Park are being developed by Garden Homes.

• Also noticed while walking around the Center: The former Artisan Vapor & CBD shop at 27 LaSalle Road, which has been vacant since August 2024, appears to be transformed into the sales office for Center Park Place condominiums.

• Also noticed in the Center: Francesca’s is totally empty. The 985 Farmington Avenue property is listed on Loopnet as available for lease, with the following caveat for the 1,879 square foot space: “Owner will not consider food uses – RETAIL ONLY.”

• Outdoor dining is also returning to the sidewalks throughout town! I snapped these photos on Friday in the Center.

• West Hartford native and Conard graduate Dr. Jon Lis will hold the grand opening and ribbon cutting for Active Health, located in the Exchange just over the line in Farmington, On Wednesday, April 8. The membership-based primary care practice offers a full gym, personal training, a sauna and pool plunge, and other services in addition to seeing patients for medical needs. At the grand opening, which is from 3-5 p.m., Active Health is partnering for fundraising with the Ron Foley Foundation and Friends of Feeney, with catering by Le Mazet. The ribbon cutting will be a joint partnership between the Central CT and West Hartford chambers of commerce.

• Just east of the West Hartford town line at 537 Farmington Avenue, The Upstate Lounge & Cafe has opened in the former Tisane Space. According to a news release, Upstate is a new neighborhood joint in Hartford’s Historic West End. Owner Joe Ploof has lived on Oxford Street, a minutes long walk from The Upstate, since 2017. When the Half Door and Tisane shut down in close succession right after the COVID lock down, he began to lament the lack of adult spaces in the neighborhood. Having lived in Brooklyn, Portland, OR, and Northampton, MA he understood how important meeting spaces can be, especially in the face of advancing technofascism. If the kids are united, they will never be divided. Ploof signed on a lease on April 1, 2025, and began the long process of rebuilding a neglected building. The roof was replaced. Every piece of conduit was cast aside for modern replacements. New equipment was installed. Recognizing his many weaknesses, Ploof hired a staff of straight killers to assist in crafting a menu and experience. After 11 months of hard work filled with expletives, sweat and the occasional minor injury, the bar opened its doors on March 11, 2026. It’s open six days a week (closed on Mondays): Sunday-Thursday noon to midnight and Friday-Saturday from noon to 2 a.m. The Upstate offers well executed bar food and cocktails, fun, unpretentious service in a comfortable and well worn environment. And lots of Genesee Cream. Screamers as they say in Rochester. Believing strongly in the Minutemen’s D Boon’s statement “punk is whatever we made it to be,” Joe created a space that reflected the Tumblr feed of his brain. Music varies from Touareg desert rock to classic country in the day time to punk and hardcore once the lights dim. While the Upstate is a loosely Upstate NY themed joint with food ranging from Rochester’s Trash Plate to a proper Buffalo wing, the bar’s only rule is that all are welcome but they gotta act right.

• Despite the filing of an objection last week, the latest on The Place 2 Be West Hartford location at 50 Memorial Road in Blue Back Square is that the date of March 31, 2026 has passed – the date agreed upon by all parties last August for the Final Stay of Execution to take effect. The sales and use tax permit had been revoked a week before the planned closing (read that complete story here), and as evidenced by signs I noticed in the windows on Saturday, the space is already being advertised for lease. In addition, as CT Insider first reported on Sunday, the contents of the Blue Back Square restaurant are being auctioned off on Wednesday, April 8 as part of a complete liquidation. The notice, on LocalAuctions.com, indicates that a preview is Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., with bidding from 1 p.m. to 3:23 p.m. (that’s the actual posted ending time). Bidding starts at $5, and according to the auction site, inventory “includes commercial appliances such as refrigeration units, tabletop griddles, sinks, workstations, racks, modern dining furnishings, and more.”

• Congratulations to Brooke Nelson, the Business Operations Manager for the West Hartford Department of Public Works, who is one of eight women honored for “Excellence, Innovation, and Leadership in Parking and Mobility.” Mobility Pathfinders, a nonprofit professional organization dedicated to advancing women in the parking and mobility industry, announced the recipients of its 2026 Awards and Scholarships on March 30. Eight exceptional women were selected in recognition of their leadership, innovation, frontline excellence, allyship, and perseverance. Nelson was selected for the Innovator Award, which recognizes a woman whose creativity and forward-thinking ideas are transforming parking and mobility. The award states, “Brooke Nelson brings a rare combination of engineering rigor and operational vision to municipal parking, championing emerging technologies that address curbside management, walkability, and climate resilience.” Nelson said, “It’s a lovely surprise and such an honor to be recognized. The award reflects the Town’s senior leadership and its policies on public parking and mobility. Congratulations also go to the Town of West Hartford!” According to Adrienne Tucker, President, Mobility Pathfinders and Director of Parking & Transportation, Kansas State University, “This class of honorees reflects everything Mobility Pathfinders stands for – women leading with grit, heart, and purpose at every level of our industry. Each of these women has made the field stronger, and we are proud to celebrate them.” Amy Anderson, Director of Awards & Scholarships, Mobility Pathfinders, and Vice President of Enterprise Projects & Implementation, LAZ Parking, said, “Selecting this year’s recipients was both a privilege and an inspiration. The nominations we received made it clear that the parking and mobility industry is home to extraordinary women doing extraordinary work. These honorees earned this recognition.” The honorees will be celebrated at the Pathways, Recognition & Opportunities in Mobility conference on June 16, 2026, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

• Congratulations to the Seniors Job Bank, which will be honored at the the 2026 Leadership Greater Hartford’s Polaris Award celebration with the “Connections Award.” The Seniors Job Bank, which is headquartered at West Hartford Town Hall, connects adults age 50 and older with meaningful employment and volunteer opportunities across Greater Hartford. By linking experienced talent with businesses, nonprofits, and households, the organization supports financial stability, community engagement, and a more inclusive, multigenerational workforce. The Seniors Job Bank is also launching a “Next Chapter Success” series that begins this week, and you can find out more about that here.

• Leon Restaurant & Bar is now offering a Sunday buffet brunch with an omelet station! More information can be found on their website.

• Did you know …

• ICYMI, Mozz & Co is opening on Wednesday at 11 a.m., 22 Raymond Road. You can read the details about West Hartford’s new Italian deli here, and I’ll plan to share some food photos in next week’s column!
• River Bend Bookshop is now offering author talks and book signings at its new 224 Park Road location, and last week hosted local author Carly Schwartz. Click here to read Melissa Cole‘s article about Schwartz’s memoir, “I’ll Try Anything Twice: Misadventures of a Self-Medicated Life.”

Remember, if you have any business news to share, add it in the comments section below or email Ronni Newton at [email protected].

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