Pandemic aside, the Blu Halo is on target to have its best year ever since opening five years ago.

Popularity surrounding the upscale northeast restaurant has, at times, forced customers to be turned away, said owner Keith Keith Paniucki.

So, the Blu — located at 3231 Bannerman Road, Suite No. 102, at the Bannerman Crossing Shopping Center — is getting bigger.

In about two weeks, expansion plans will begin and are slated to be complete by Valentine's Day. Paniucki said the restaurant is taking over the neighboring 1,300 square-foot space occupied by Lucky and Charmed, a boutique store.

He said the move allows the restaurant to add three more booths, a highly requested dining option, and six more tables. Overall capacity will go from up to 200 to 260 seating.

In addition, Paniucki said the restaurant is adding a seafood raw bar — a giant display of lobster, shrimp, oysters, mussels, king crabs and snow crabs, when in season, all on ice.

"That's inventory we would use to build any seafood towers for the whole restaurant," Paniucki said. "But, we will have eight seats around this bar where somebody can sit down and be served fresh seafood from their seat."

The idea was inspired by other restaurants in larger cities, such as Orlando.

"If you envision how you might walk into Texas Roadhouse, where you have steaks on display in case. It's something very similar, but it's actually the seafood sitting on ice," Paniucki said, adding the raw bar will be offered Wednesday through Sunday.

Contact TaMaryn Waters at tlwaters@tallahassee.com or follow @TaMarynWaters on Twitter.

Never miss a story: Subscribe to the Tallahassee Democrat using the link at the top of the page.

This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Blu Halo expanding space, adding raw seafood bar to its menu