Atlas Restaurant Group, the group behind Ouzo Bay, Azumi and Loch Bar, is taking over two Harbor East restaurants with plans to transform them in 2017.

The group will partner with David Smith, who owns Bagby Restaurant Group, to rebrand Fleet Street Kitchen and Ten Ten American Bistro. The restaurants will close in late January for two to three weeks to be remodeled.

David Smith is the uncle of Alex Smith, who owns Atlas Restaurant Group. Alex Smith said they discussed revamping the neighboring restaurants without completely overhauling the staff.

“The idea was to keep the quality people that they have,” Alex Smith said.

Atlas Restaurant Group also brought on a chef and a general manager from another competing group. Chef Julian Marucci and David Goodman, formerly of the Foreman Wolf Restaurant Group, joined Atlas Restaurant Group as chef partner and operating partner, respectively. Marucci, Goodman, David Smith and Atlas Restaurant Group will be partners in the two new concepts.

“At the beginning of this year, I knew it was time to branch out and start a new venture,” Marucci, previously executive chef at Cinghiale and Pazo, said in a statement.

Fleet Street Kitchen and Ten Ten will continue to operate as usual until early 2017, when Atlas Restaurant Group will renovate Fleet Street Kitchen, Ten Ten and the courtyard that separates them.

Bagby Restaurant Group will continue to operate Cunningham's in Towson and Bagby Pizza Co. separately.

In brief

Chef Cyrus Keefer has made another move — away from the traditional restaurant kitchen and into a nonprofit group.

Keefer recently joined City Seeds, an arm of the Baltimore nonprofit Humanim that works to create jobs in the culinary industry for people with barriers to employment. Keefer is now the group's culinary director, overseeing its catering program, job training and pop-up events.

“I'm not just stuck at the stove anymore,” he said.

Keefer most recently headed Alewife's kitchen this summer. In the spring, he launched a private events and restaurant consulting business. He's previously held executive chef positions at restaurants including 13.5 Wine Bar, Fork & Wrench and Birroteca.

In his new role, Keefer said he plans to revamp City Seeds' catering offerings, and he wants to provide more opportunities for employees within City Seeds to host their own pop-up events. The program employs about a dozen people, and Keefer expects that to grow to 30 or 40 in the next year.

The move to City Seeds filled Keefer's personal aspiration to do more mission-driven work, he said.

“I've always been itching for a mission myself,” he said.

Nacho Mama's second location has opened its doors in Towson.

The Tex-Mex restaurant, owned by Jackie McCusker and Phil Gelso, opened Friday after undergoing a soft opening last week.

The Towson outpost of the popular Canton bar and restaurant has been in the works for the better part of a year. The new location is housed at 2 W. Pennsylvania Ave.

Known for its hubcap margaritas, Nacho Mama's features Tex-Mex cuisine in a quirky atmosphere; the Canton location has plenty of Elvis decor.

Dining dates

Friday: Buck a Shuck $1 select oysters and happy hour prices; all day at the Oceanaire Seafood Room (801 Aliceanna St.); a la carte.

Tuesday: Brews with Bites four-course beer dinner featuring RaR Brewing; 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. at Guy Fieri's Baltimore Kitchen + Bar at the Horseshoe Casino Baltimore (1525 Russell St.); $45.

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smeehan@baltsun.com

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