Corte Oven and Bar Took Over a Failed Pizza Expansion on Ludlow Street
The Corio Group's second restaurant opened in the exact space Mulherin's Pizzeria's expansion couldn't make work, inheriting a buildout instead of starting from scratch.
Corte Oven and Bar opened October 27 at 1175 Ludlow Street in East Market, the second restaurant from the Corio Group, the team behind Corio in University City. Chef David Feola, front of house lead Ryan Mulholland and beverage director James Smith run the kitchen, with Chris Gueye managing the bar.
The address has history. It's the former home of Mulherin's Pizzeria's failed expansion attempt. A wood-fired restaurant stepping into a space built for a pizza operation means the hood, the gas line and the venting were already solved before Corio signed anything.
That's the math every landlord on this block should run. A failed concept still leaves behind working infrastructure, and the next tenant inherits it instead of building it from scratch. For owners holding a Center City space with a kitchen already roughed in, the Corio Group's expansion is the kind of tenant worth chasing directly.
Source: Philadelphia Magazine
Why it matters
A failed concept leaves working kitchen infrastructure behind, and that's the pitch for landlords holding similar restaurant space.
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