It’s taken almost a year to get the city’s final approval on building and site plans, but it looks like Lisa Riley is officially moving closer to bringing her new restaurant – located inside a brand new new building – to downtown North Bend.
It’s a huge step forward for Riley, who tragically lost the restaurant she was just a few days away from opening in a massive natural gas explosion that rocked North Bend in April 2014.
She never gave up on her dream of bringing farm to table, comfortable and family friendly American food to the Snoqualmie Valley, though.
The Rusty Roof, a dream realized
The new restaurant will be called The Rusty Roof and will be located on the land parcel located on E. North Bend Way, between the post office and the Mount Si Court Apartments.
Lisa said although the building’s exterior design wasn’t quite what she’d envisioned due to city design standards, she plans to put her own stamp on the interior, describing it as hole-in-the-wall theme with a warm feel. The will be also be garage doors that open onto a large outdoor patio with a fireplace to keep warm.
What about the food you ask?
Well, one conversation with Lisa and it is abundantly clear that she is passionate about food – and even more so when it comes to bringing that food – at a decent price point – to her hometown. She’s a big proponent of farm to table fresh, local food – including surf and turf and high quality steaks – and plans to also offer a large vegetarian menu.
The Rusty Roof will have what Lisa called a ‘woman-driven’ kitchen that opens its arms to others, featuring guest chefs who will create a menu from different areas of the wold for theme weeks. The kitchen will also be a place for chefs-in-training, as Lisa plans to offer educational internships for homeless training programs and Mount Si’s culinary arts CTE program.
When will construction start, restaurant open?
Lisa plans to hire a large contractor in an effort to construct the mixed-use building as fast as possible. The restaurant will occupy the 3,600 sq. ft. main floor and the upstairs will provide about 2,000 sq. ft. of office space.
Now that the Rusty Roof site plans are officially approved by the City of North Bend, Lisa hopes to have building permits very soon, break ground this spring and have The Rusty Roof open within about six months.
Of course, hiccups can happen when it comes to new construction… so look for a future story when The Rusty Roof is closer to opening its doors.
Good Luck, Lisa!
