TAMPA — A new restaurant from chef Ferrell Alvarez and his team at Proper House Group is the latest concept to join the Water Street Tampa development.

Ash, an Italian-inspired concept, will open in spring 2023 on the ground floor of Asher, Water Street’s largest luxury residential building.

Though the news was first announced Tuesday in a release from Water Street developers Strategic Property Partners, Alvarez and Proper House Group partners Ty Rodriguez and Chon Nguyen have been working out the final details for the new restaurant for more than a year. The hospitality group also runs the lauded Seminole Heights restaurant Rooster & The Till as well as the fast-casual concepts Nebraska Mini Mart, Gallito Taqueria and Dang Dude.

For their latest endeavor, slated to be their most ambitious undertaking yet, the team has partnered with Proper House Group director of operations Myles Gallagher.

The full-service restaurant will feature seating for approximately 150 people and include 2,400 square feet inside the restaurant and an additional 1,000 square feet of outdoor dining space. Unlike so many other Italian restaurants in the area, Alvarez has said pizza and pasta will not be the focus. Instead, the restaurant — described as “focused yet fun and playful cuisine with Italian undertones” — will emphasize seafood dishes, meats and other locally sourced ingredients and produce. There may be small, shareable plates as well as some larger-format and family-style dishes.

The restaurant’s name — a nod to the Asher building — is a reference to the ash tree, “a symbol of creative expression, productivity, strength and longevity,” according to the developer’s release. The group consulted Houston-based interior design firm Gin Design Group and Tampa’s graphic design studio Pep Rally Inc. on the restaurant’s design.

Early renderings, provided by the restaurant group, show a dining room and bar outfitted in rich and warm neutrals, arched lighting fixtures, a centerpiece sculptural ash tree and a bar with lounge-style seating.

The new restaurant joins a long list of anticipated food and dining concepts coming to the new downtown Tampa development, the majority of which have yet to open. Those include Wagamana, Boulon Brasserie, Predalina, The Pearl, Small Giant, Wine on Water and others.

Once open, Ash will serve lunch and dinner daily and a weekend brunch.