Dairy Barn location in Oswego could have tenant soon, officials say

Oswego Economic Development Director Kevin Leighty is confident the former Dairy Barn in downtown Oswego will have a new tenant soon after a restaurant group headed by former Jimmy John’s CEO Gregg Majewski recently dropped plans to redevelop the building.

“There is a lot of interest in the space because it is fully built out,” Leighty told members of the Economic Development Commission at their Oct. 9 meeting. “It is ready to go. ... I believe we will see a tenant in there soon.”

Leighty said there already have been a couple of showings to different restaurant groups.

“I don’t know who specifically,” he said.

Craveworthy Brands has said it still is interested in opening a restaurant in Oswego.

“We are currently evaluating our options for this project,” Craveworthy Brands said in a statement following the news that the building at 121 Main St. is up for lease again. “While the timing has prompted us to consider various possibilities, we remain hopeful about opening this location in the future. For now, our primary focus is on developing new locations in our core markets as we continue to expand.”

Craveworthy Brands had been leasing the building until recently. It is the parent company of several restaurant brands, including The Budlong Southern Chicken, Wing It On, Krafted Burger + Tap, Genghis Grill, BD’s Mongolian Grill, Flat Top Grill, Soom Soom, a five-unit Mediterranean fast casual restaurant, and Dirty Dough cookie brand.

At one point, The Budlong Southern Chicken had announced it was going to locate in the building. That project was subsequently dropped in favor of a plan to open a restaurant featuring Craveworthy’s different brands.

The Dairy Barn was an ice cream shop that closed its doors in 2022. The Dairy Barn was built on the site that previously housed the longtime ice cream shop Dairy Hut, which closed in August 2019.

The Scoop ice cream shop opened last year at 108 Main St., across the street from the Dairy Barn.