After months of suspension, the former Santolea restaurant has officially closed – and will be transformed into ‘The Fremont Fire Pit’ by Peter Glick, owner of Roxy’s Diner and Backdoor @ Roxy’s. Promising ‘BBQ, Burgers & Booze from the Center of the Universe,’ the restaurant will be open to all ages and serve as a complement to the neighborhood, and his two other going concerns across the street.
With heavy influence brought by the Solstice Parade and Burning Man, Glick also wants to bring intrinsic Fremont funk into the establishment. Having been one of the original operators of Smokin’ Pete’s BBQ on Northwest 65th Street in Ballard, Glick looks forward to once again offering up mouth-watering BBQ, and famished Fremonsters can look for an opening, hopefully, in November.
Santolea restaurant opened in early 2010 after an extensive remodel of the space. It shut down a few months later, for another remodel, and reopened as a bar. Another remodel a few months after that, and it reopened again. In February 2011, a sign went up announcing a week closure for winter break, and it never opened again with the sign finally removed in June 2011.
For those nearby, having the space open will be a welcome relief. To have an already established, and proven, restaurateur take over spreads a yummy sauce on the news.