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Miami Beach broker to open Little River restaurant

The lease includes 3,000 sf of outdoor space

Liliana and Howard Chase
Liliana and Howard Chase

Miami Beach broker Howard Chase and his wife, Liliana Chase, are getting into the restaurant business.

The couple signed a three-year lease with extension options, for the former Cheeseburger Baby space at 212 Northeast 79th Street in Miami, Howard Chase said. They plan to open Big Mama’s BBQ within the next month.

Howard Chase is the broker/owner of Howard Chase Real Estate, which has two locations in Miami Beach. He’s been in the industry since 2005, and while he has no plans of stepping away from that, the couple will be running the new restaurant. Liliana Chase previously owned a restaurant in Cali, Colombia.

“We brokered so many [restaurant leases] over the years, now we’re taking the plunge,” Howard Chase said. “We know the area really well because we have the second office up on 71st Street” in Miami Beach.

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The restaurant will be mostly outdoors. Chase said that Big Mama’s BBQ will be leasing the 260-square-foot building and a 3,000-square-foot outdoor space that can be used for live music and outdoor seating. Property records show that Kevin Hinds owns the building, which fronts 79th Street. Hinds is a real estate investor and agent.

Chase said the lease includes four three-year options for a total of 15 years, including the initial lease term. He declined to provide the rent amount.

The barbecue restaurant will serve classic dishes like baby back ribs, St. Louis-style ribs, pulled pork and fried chicken, with a Wynwood vibe, Chase said. It will be open seven days a week for lunch and dinner. He’s planning a soft opening in about two weeks.

A gutted building at 7924 Northeast Second Avenue is caddy corner to the site. Robert Danial, Avra Jain and other investors planned to convert the building into a live/work office development.

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