Farmers Gastropub relocating from downtown

Farmers Gastropub has joined art-house movie theater Moxie Cinema and retro antique store Funtiques Market in plans to relocate from Wilhoit Plaza in downtown Springfield.

The farm-to-table, English-style restaurant and pub plans to move into new digs at 2620 S. Glenstone Ave., at the north end of the Brentwood Shopping Center across from Battlefield Mall, by New Year's Eve, according to a notice posted at FarmersGastropub.com yesterday by owner Bill Griffiths. He could not be reached for comment by deadline.

The Moxie has signed on for space on the first floor of the College Station Lofts project under development by Brentwood Management and is planning a January move, according to Springfield Business Journal archives.

Another neighbor, Funtiques, is currently operating two locations in Ozark and Springfield, until its Wilhoit Plaza lease is up at the end of March, according to the company's Facebook page. A call to the downtown store - which sells vintage items from the 1940s-70s - went unanswered this morning.

Farmers Gastropub has operated at Wilhoit Plaza since its opening in 2009. It garnered international attention last year, when the United Kingdom’s The Telegraph named the Springfield establishment Best Restaurant in its Best of British competition. The restaurant, which has capitalized on the trend of sourcing local foods, reported nearly $1 million in 2011 revenue, according to SBJ archives.

In the notice posted online, Griffiths said the move allows the restaurateur to fully realize the goal he envisioned four years ago.

"With our current lease running out, we have the chance to improve upon Bill’s dream," the notice said. "We can create from a clean sheet of paper his perfect pub environment with his ideal kitchen and a pub bar."[[In-content Ad]]