A new restaurant is in the beginning stages in Knoxville for next year, having received approval during the Knoxville Design Review Board meeting on Dec. 21.

STIR is a restaurant and bar based in Chattanooga. It opened in 2016, and expanded to two locations in Raleigh and Charlotte, North Carolina. The restaurant specializes in craft cocktails, seafood and oysters.

A new location is planned for Knoxville in 2023, set to use the commercial space on the ground floor of Stockyard Lofts at 215 Willow Ave. According to design plans, the space will be 5,424 square feet with a proposed 345 seats available.

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The exterior of the restaurant is planned to lightly renovate the corner of Stockyard Loft on Willow Avenue and the alley. A patio is proposed for the restaurant on the design renders.

The owners of STIR, SquareOne Holding, did not respond to a request for comment. Co-owner of Balter Beerworks - also owned by SquareOne - Blaine Wedekind is working on the concept and responded to an inquiry. He'll have more updates next year.

"STIR features scratch-made dishes, fresh oysters from our seafood cold bar and craft cocktails made with artisanal ice," Wedekind said in an email to Knox News. "With a large patio and roll-up garage doors, STIR is ideal open-air dining and we are very excited to bring this concept to the Old City."

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This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Stir restaurant and bar coming in 2023; Old City; Knoxville