Family friendly American bistro planned for downtown Lynn

LYNN – A prominent Lynn attorney and an accomplished local chef are teaming up to open a new restaurant in the heart of the downtown, and they’re confident the third time will be a charm for the Oxford Street site where two upscale eateries failed.Attorney Mark DeJoie, principal of the newly formed Lynn Restaurant Group, Inc. (LRG) and Matt O’Neil, a Swa-mpscott native and Nahant resident who earned degrees from Bates College and the Culinary Institute of America, plan to open Blue Ox in March, in the building that was formerly the Downtown Bistro and, before that, the Oxford Street Grill.The Blue Ox will succeed, O’Neil said, because it will be family friendly and offer “comfort food with a twist” – from cheeseburgers to prime steaks, salads and fresh seafood – appealing to people who live and work in Lynn, whereas the former establishments struggled because the fine dining model was wrong for the demographic.”We want this restaurant to have mass appeal,” said O’Neil. “We want people to come in and get good service and a meal with a good value.”We’re not trying to compete with Boston or break new culinary ground here,” O’Neil added. “We want to do something on the North Shore that North Shore people will enjoy.”DeJoie and O’Neil say they realize some might question the timing of opening a restaurant given the sour economy, but they’re certain there’s a market for a good an affordable family restaurant downtown.”We will create a place that people wan t to go to,” DeJoie said. “Everyone agrees the downtown needs a restaurant.”And DeJoie added the premises and parking area at Blue Ox will be well-lighted, and the plan is to have all customers’ vehicles visible from the restaurant.LRG has finalized its purchase of the building from former Downtown Bistro owner John Moore, who is also owner of the Navy Yard Bistro of Charlestown.James Cowdell, executive director of the Lynn Economic Development and Industrial Corporation (EDIC) was determined to help a new eatery open and succeed at the site.”This is an exciting and important development for Lynn,” said Cowdell, who aggressively courted DeJoie and O’Neil when he learned of their interest of opening a restaurant in Lynn. “This is a piece of the puzzle in the redevelopment of the downtown and nearby waterfront.”LRG will assume an EDIC loan that was granted to the Downtown Bistro. Plans are for the new restaurant to seat about 100 people, with an adjoining function room that will accommodate 35 people.Before teaming with O’Neil, DeJoie consulted with another chef, but he said that person’s vision sounded too much like that of the eateries that failed.”Matt’s ‘comfort food with a twist’ sounded different, something that will work here,” DeJoie said.O’Neil’s culinary interest was borne when he took a cooking class in Italy while spending a semester abroad in his junior year at Bates. When he graduated from Bates with a political science degree, he went to work selling computer software and lasted only a few months on the job.”I hated it, so I decided to go to culinary school,” O’Neil said.And he chose the Culinary Institute of America in New York, recognized as the premiere culinary school in the world. While there, he did an externship at No. 9 Park in Boston under world-renowned chef Barbara Lynch. He has since worked at Prezza in Boston’s North End and the former Copia in Charlestown.Fantasy football fans will recognize O’Neil as the ‘Cooking Coach” who offers tailgating tips and recipes each Sunday on the “Fantasy Football Now” show on ESPN.com. Clips of the show can be viewed online at www.cookingcoachonline.com”We were very fortunate to find Matt,” said DeJoie. “He is a perfect fit with his credentials and experience and being from the area.”DeJoie said an architect is now working on modifications to the building, and he expects to obtain necessary permits from the city in the coming weeks.”We’re planning for a March 1 opening,” he said.