Coming soon: A new place to sip mojitos and watch the sunset on the Daytona oceanfront

DAYTONA BEACH — In less than three years, a vacant oceanfront property in the heart of the city's beachside core tourist area is going to become the home of a well-known Mexican restaurant and nightclub.

Señor Frog's, a fun eatery that serves everything from enchiladas and tortilla soup to burgers and salads, is going to build a two-story structure a short stroll south of the Main Street Pier.

The restaurant known for its colorful cantinas and rum Jungle Bird drinks will have indoor dining as well as seating on a deck overlooking the waves of the Atlantic Ocean.

"I love Señor Frog's," said Daytona Beach City Commissioner Paul Reed, who along with the mayor and other commissioners approved the project last week.

The Mexico-based company that owns Señor Frog's restaurant, Grupo Anderson's, decided to locate in Daytona Beach after striking a partnership deal with the city government.

Señor Frog's has agreed to lease the city-owned property just north of Harvey Avenue for the next 50 years, and the city will give the project a boost by covering $500,000 of its construction costs. The city will also pay a broker's commission subsidy of $61,625.

With monthly base rent starting at $10,000 and doubling to $20,000 by the sixth year of operation, the city expects to quickly recap its contribution. Starting in the seventh lease year, the monthly base rent will increase by 3% each year.

The city will also charge Señor Frog's percentage rent, collecting 3% of annual restaurant revenue that exceeds $5 million. The 3% payment on all sales over $5 million can provide an additional $30,000 per $1 million in sales.

The city is also getting a $9 million development on the .75-acre parcel between the beach and Ocean Avenue that's been empty for decades and only used for parking in recent years.

Señor Frog's hoped to attract more new development

Señor Frog's is an internationally known restaurant chain based in Mexico that's been around for more than 50 years. The company has restaurants in tourist destinations in Mexico, the Caribbean, and the United States.

There are Señor Frog's eateries in Orlando, Miami, Panama City Beach, Las Vegas, and Myrtle Beach, S.C. Grupo Anderson's operates a total of 21 restaurants, including one Señor Frog's in San Juan.

If the Daytona Señor Frog's at 41 S. Ocean Ave. does well, Grupo Anderson's might locate one of its other 14 brands in Daytona Beach, according to a recent memo written by Jeffrey Brown, the city's director of Economic and Strategic Opportunities.

"I believe this project will be a catalyst for future development in the surrounding area," Brown wrote in the June 23 memo to city Planning Director Dennis Mrozek.

The properties directly north and south of the new restaurant site are both vacant and undeveloped.

Brown expects the restaurant to pull people to the city's oceanfront year-round, not just during special events. He said that 12-month-per-year patronage "is desperately needed in the area to reduce the dependency upon special events and provide economic stability to the Main Street area."

"Señor Frog's in Panama City Beach has had 218,000 individual visitors in the previous twelve months," he said in his memo. "I expect this location to do as well if not better."

Daytona Señor Frog's to be open seven days a week

To make the venture possible, Daytona Beach city commissioners had to approve the $500,000 buildout contribution, the 50-year ground lease and a public use permit that includes land development code waivers to allow the bar use and to reduce the minimum number of parking spaces required.

With other parking lots and a parking garage nearby, the project requested to have 21 parking spaces for the 9,625-square-foot restaurant.

Matt Fuerst, part owner of the Ocean Deck Restaurant, told city commissioners at their meeting last week that he's concerned about the parking lot that will be lost when Señor Frog's begins construction. Fuerst's oceanfront restaurant is located a short distance south of the new Mexican eatery site.

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City officials say they put out a request for proposals for the lot at 41 S. Ocean Ave., and Señor Frog's was the lone respondent.

Señor Frog's will build the two-story structure, and the restaurant will have title to the building and all improvements on the land while the lease remains in force. When the agreement ends, title to everything on the land will be transferred to the city.

The lease will require the restaurant to be open seven days per week at least from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. The establishment can open as early as 5 a.m. and close as late as 2 a.m. if the operators so choose.

Half of the city's $500,000 buildout payment to the restaurant will be due 30 days after permits are secured for the project. The remaining half of the payment will be made 30 days after the project receives its certificate of occupancy.

You can reach Eileen at Eileen.Zaffiro@news-jrnl.com

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Señor Frog's restaurant coming to Daytona Beach's oceanfront soon