Rosemary-Beauty Queen Update

A proposed restaurant and bar on Forrest Avenue near Five Points has delayed its opening while the project team — largely comprised of movers and shakers in the music and hospitality industries — works through a series of challenges involving Metro approvals.

The Rosemary and Beauty Queen initially targeted a fall 2016 opening for what was described as one restaurant and bar inside the historic home at 1102 Forrest, and a second rooftop bar atop a garage at the back of the lot.

The project was slowed when Metro issued a stop work order for unapproved construction taking place on the garage. In turn, resistance followed from the Metro Historic Zoning Commission. While a compromise was eventually reached, which would have enclosed the rear rooftop bar, ownership has since taken an appeal into the courts.

The conflict has also demanded the attention of the neighborhood association, as the rooftop bar’s potential height and design raised broader questions about enforcement of zoning and overlay guidelines.