When former elementary school teacher Mike Graham started a lemonade stand in 2018, his only goal was to raise money for his new after-school program, Energy Boys. With a motto of “going from negative to positive,” Graham’s program mentored boys cast off as having too much energy by turning them into 5K runners.
“In order to get them running shoes, I would have to sell lemonade,” Graham said. “Oh my goodness, the people loved the lemonade so much that after COVID I started making it again, and then I started selling at a market.”
Now, Graham finds himself selling his same naturally-sweetened and teacher-approved lemonades full-time from the counter of his Teacher’s Ade storefront inside City Food Hall at 150 NW 13th St., Ste. 10, the newest location of the nation’s fastest-growing food hall.
“I’m just thinking through in my head everything I need to do, what else I need to get prepped for tomorrow,” Graham said while handing out cups of lemonade at a VIP event the night before the City Food Hall’s grand opening on Thursday. “Just got to make it happen.”
City Food Hall CEO and founder Peter Rounce and co-founder Kenzie Motai launched the brand in 2021 aiming to “foster enduring connections between the guests, partners, and the local communities that they serve,” according to a press release.
With locations already in Destin, Orlando, West Palm Beach and Athens, Georgia, the 14,000-square-foot Gainesville location in The Standard at Gainesville student housing complex across from the University of Florida campus looks to extend that mission to UF students and the north Florida community.
The 10 culturally diverse restaurant menus operating out of City Food Hall, from Mediterranean, sushi and Raman to New York bagels and Jamaican jerk chicken, aim to answer the “’What type of food does everyone want for dinner?’” question faced by many.
City Food Hall’s entertainment schedule of live Gators games on TV and events like karaoke, comedy and ladies’ nights, along with the full-service neighborhood bar offering Happy Hour from 4 to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday also looks to add to the communal culinary experience.
“Soon this is going to be the new hangout spot,” said Jeff Ninan the City Food Hall’s general manager. “This place is not just for students. It’s for family, friends, young couples, old couples and kids. Everyone’s welcome, and we want to bring back community.”
Another primary goal of City Food Hall is to serve as a launching pad for up-and-coming food and drink entrepreneurs like Graham, who are looking to try out and perfect their recipes before opening their own brick-and-mortar storefronts.
Syria-native Lina Salhani opened Hummus & Flame and Wings & Co. in City Food Hall after moving to Gainesville to be closer to her kids at UF. She said watching customers eat her family’s hummus recipe, which takes her four days to make, or the chicken nugget recipe she crafted at home to accommodate her son’s picky eating, is her favorite part of the job.
“Cooking is a hobby to me,” Salhani said. “I love feeding people my hummus and putting a smile on their faces. That makes my day.”
Salhani’s employee, Timothy Chaves, also recently moved to Gainesville for his job helping manage and serve at her restaurants. He said watching Salhani has inspired him to maybe start his own business one day.
“I could go be a server elsewhere; Cracker Barrel, Applebee’s. But it’s a new opportunity, it’s a new location,” Chaves said. “Maybe in the future, [running a restaurant] is something I could do personally.”
Other restaurants in City Food Hall like Luke’s NY Bagels were already established as local Gainesville favorites. But the food hall provided new opportunities Luke’s other location couldn’t offer, such as a walk-up window to help support the demand for the bagels handcrafted with mineral water from New York.
“Our employees get up around 2 a.m. and make our bagels from scratch,” said Josiah Hurst, whose dad is looking to become Luke’s food hall location’s owner. “I don’t know if you’ve seen the lines, but in the mornings, our line is very long.”
City Food Hall is open from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday through Saturday. To learn more about the restaurants located inside City Food Hall or pursue a storefront of your own, visit cityfoodhall.com/gainesville.
