Former Mojo's owners opening SouthPort Kitchen and Bar in Rye: Here's their plan
RYE — The former owners of Mojo’s BBQ Grill and Tavern in Portsmouth are back in the restaurant business.
SouthPort Kitchen and Bar is coming to Rye, a concept created by husband-and-wife restaurateurs Aaron Jones and Carrie Law-Jones. In May 2021, the couple sold the business now known as Mojo's West End Tavern to one of their longtime regulars, beverage distributor Kevin Crowell.
After taking time off to vacation and tend to family, the two got the itch to return to their roots.
“We started thinking a year ago about what the next move was and decided we wanted to get back into the business. It’s in our blood,” Jones said.
SouthPort Kitchen and Bar's name comes from a simple premise: Its location in the seaside community is south of Portsmouth. The couple envisions it as a new culinary option along the Route 1 strip that doesn't require driving into downtown Portsmouth. Between an expanded bar and the floor plan, SouthPort will have roughly 60 seats.
The Greenland couple are leasing the 150 Lafayette Road space where their friend Oneta Modern operated The Office Lounge. Modern expanded her business into Dover last year and subsequently closed her original Rye location, creating a vacancy.
It's the same Lafayette Road location Jones, the former owner of the Bread Box in Portsmouth, and Law-Jones looked at years ago when they still owned Mojo’s. They later frequented The Office Lounge and have now hit their full circle moment with the property.
“It’s definitely going to be a lot different. Mojo’s has more of the sports bar atmosphere and in here there will be less televisions,” Jones said. “We won’t be doing catering, we’ll just be focusing on the restaurant itself.”
Cell tower near Rye Elementary School? Bid to boost "weak" service faces opposition
Law-Jones has held a few part-time bartending gigs at businesses in Hampton and Seabrook since she and her husband left Mojo’s. She had missed interactions with customers.
“I miss the social aspect, just being out and being around all the people,” she said.
What will be on the menu at SouthPort Kitchen and Bar?
The two are sifting through old menus from their previous, now-closed restaurants, NoLita Italian Kitchen and Tavola Italian Restaurant, as they work to finalize the SouthPort menu.
Expect an “elevated pub menu,” with a mixture of pasta, steak and fish dishes, appetizers and pizzas cooked in a wood-fired, Forno Bravo pizza oven, Jones said.
“I like to call it comfort food in a comfortable space,” he added.
Jones, 51, and Law-Jones, 42, are completing a series of renovations in the building, including doubling the size of the bar. Their mission is to have SouthPort ready to open and serve patrons by late April or early May, just in time for the busy tourist season.
“It’s our community. It’s where we live. It's nice that we’re going to be able to share this with people,” Jones said. “I think it’ll be another neighborhood spot.
“I like the hustle and bustle. We like people. I like when a guest comes in and they tell me when they walk out the door and tell me what a great experience they’ve had,” he added.
This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: SouthPort Kitchen and Bar opening in Rye NH at 150 Lafayette Road
