How Justin Timberlake, golf and a new restaurant are part of Greenville's Airport District

Actor and music icon Justin Timberlake is developing ties to the Upstate by investing in a par-3 golf course in Greenville, and on Jan. 10, the restaurant portion opened to the public.

The Grubhouse restaurant is at 61 Villa Road near the downtown Airport District. The project is part of 3’s Greenville Golf & Grill at the downtown airport golf course.

Timberlake's partners at 8AM Golf describe their company on the website as "an innovative new concept in golf entertainment that combines accessible par-3 golf with cutting-edge hospitality and entertainment amenities for golfers and non-golfers alike."

After a 90-minute game of golf, people can work up an appetite and eat at The Grubhouse, a 4,200-square-foot golf clubhouse-style eatery. The restaurant is part of a yearlong, $1 million renovation to the former CrossWinds Par 3 clubhouse, now known as 3's Greenville Golf.

Davis Sezna the owner of the downtown airport golf course, said Timberlake's group expressed interest in the 30-acre golf property in 2018. He said the group came in with an aggressive 35-percent financial investment into the 12-hole, par-3 Greenville course.

"He (Timberlake) brings his creativity and an appetite to entertain," Sezna said. "It's fun to talk to him about entertaining people because we entertain, but our stage is golf, putting, and now food.

"Food is survival, but for me, it's much more than that," Sezna added. "It's entertainment."

According to Sezna, Timberlake's last visit to Greenville was around early 2023 while filming a movie in Atlanta. Sezna believes he will see the Billboard and Emmy Award winner more now that the restaurant portion of the golf course is open.

But last year was not Timberlake's first visit to the area. He visited Greenville when NSYNC held a concert at Bon Secours in 2000.

Temperature, Taste and Texture: What to expect from menu at The Grubhouse

Sezna, a former University of Georgia golf student-athlete in the 1970s, has opened 50 food & beverage restaurants, starting with Klondike Kate's, which opened in Delaware in 1980. He also became part of the hospitality scene at L.A. Live in downtown Los Angeles.

As of January 2024, all 50 of his food & dining establishments are still in operation, giving him confidence that this new Greenville restaurant will be successful.

"I care about every item on the menu, how it's delivered, tastes, and how to make people want to eat it again," Sezna said.

To curate a menu suited for downtown and the Airport District, he called his favorite chef in South Carolina, Michael Toscano of Le Farfalle in Charleston, who recommended Chris Wehking to help foster what will hopefully work for the 51st time in Sezna's food and beverage portfolio.

Although new to Greenville, Wehking is already sourcing Virginia oysters from Gusto Seafood in Greer while taking the skillful cooking methods from Toscano to make dishes simple yet fitting to a casual, public golf course dining space.

"We're trying to make this game that is thought of often as snobby and make it accessible," Wehking said. "So if we do that from the food side, with foods that people know, and make it extraordinary, it will make people come back."

Sezna and Wehking agreed that temperature, taste and texture are the three priorities for an opening menu, highlighted by an 8-inch cheesesteak with shaved ribeye, a double patty smash burger and a prime rib sandwich.

Other notable menu items include a Carolina hot chicken sandwich on a potato bun, poutine and a classic Caesar salad with housemade dressing.

"I believe in serving food that people are willing to drive across town for," Sezna said.

Goals, outlook for next 10 years for Grubhouse, 3's Greenville

Current visitors at 3's Greenville Golf often stop by to watch airplanes land at the Greenville Downtown Airport and have a cocktail. Sezna expects that with the addition of The Grubhouse, 60% of their patronage will be non-golfers.

While his track record on what works in the hospitality industry has worked, golf and food are never an automatic success, especially without being a private country club establishment.

Sezna believes that the key to sustaining business in Greenville will be assembling a cohesive service staff from the dishwasher to the groundskeeper to the owner, meaning they are all proud of the product and can naturally endorse the food and golf experience.

"The 5-year goal is to have a dozen 3's Greenville concepts across the country," he said.

With an emerging executive chef in Wehking, an outdoor patio with firepits that can be converted to grills and 12 lighted fairways open until 11 p.m., Timberlake's group investment in Greenville could be a unique staple for years to come.

"When you combine food, and hospitality with casual golf, it will always be a good time to be had," Sezna said.

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Reader's Note: Thank you for your continued support and readership of The Greenville News' food & dining coverage. As we continue to develop relationships, taste test and tell truthful stories on food & dining in Greenville, we encourage our readers to reach out via e-mail (ajackson@gannett.com), phone (864-298-4038) and social media (@ajhappened) with topics to cover, places to eat, and interesting food finds within the Upstate.

– A.J. Jackson covers the food & dining scene, along with arts, entertainment and downtown culture for The Greenville News. Contact him by email at ajackson@gannett.com, and follow him on X (formally Twitter) @ajhappened.

This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Grubhouse casual golf restaurant has opened at 3's in Greenville