Legacy Real Estate & Development (Legacy) announced that Chattanooga restaurateur Nathan Lindley will open a second Il Primo at Cambridge Square in Ooltewah. Il Primo is Mr. Lindley’s popular Italian concept at 1100 Hixson Pike in Riverview.
Cambridge Square is being managed and developed by Legacy. The community is located at the intersection of Ooltewah-Georgetown Road and Lee Highway, less than a quarter-mile from I-75 at exit 11. Il Primo will be the 19th tenant since the development began in 2013.
Il Primo will occupy approximately 4,000 square feet in a newly designed building that will be located on Cambridge’s public square. Construction on the building will begin late this summer and the restaurant is scheduled to open in June 2017. Il Primo will be the only ground-level tenant. Initial design concepts call for an open floor plan with indoor/outdoor dining areas, and a bocce ball court running along the north side of the building. Initially, Il Primo will be open for dinner only.
“Nathan and his team have proven themselves time and again to be world-class operators, and we look forward to working with them to bring the Il Primo concept to diners in the greater Ooltewah area,” said Jim Cheney, Marketing Director for Cambridge Square. “We also highly recommend that you visit the Riverview location — if you have not already — to get a sense of the truly wonderful cuisine to come in 2017. We are thrilled they are here.”
Mr. Lindley is also the owner of Public House which opened in early 2009 in downtown Chattanooga’s Wharehouse Row. He began his restaurant career in early 1990s working for famed Southern chef Frank Stitt, primarily at his Italian influenced restaurant Bottega. In 2000, he founded the St. John’s Restaurant in Chattanooga, which he owned until selling the restaurant to his brother in January 2005.
“Since leaving the formality of fine dining and opening Public House and Il Primo, my goal has been to create communal and familial gathering places around honest food and relaxed settings,” said Mr. Lindley. “More than anything else I have done, Il Primo has become an integral part of its neighborhood and a place that is truly part of its regular customer’s lives. That was the restaurant’s mission statement, and in that sense it has been a great success. The developers of Cambridge Square have a shared a goal of community and I am excited to add this concept to their growing development.”
Il Primo specializes in American Italian cuisine. Influenced by the classic recipes of Italian communities in the Northeast, the food at Il Primo celebrates the bounty and excess of America combined with the sensibility and comfort of Italian cuisine. Classic American-Italian dishes such as Meatballs, Lasagna, Bolognese and Risotto are built from scratch each day using carefully sourced, always fresh ingredients. The menu rotates to highlight the best of each season. As has been a hallmark of all Nathan Lindley restaurants, much of the products in the spring, summer and fall come from local farmers who have provided produce to his restaurants for over 15 years.