Orono’s Ushuaia club opens new restaurant

ORONO – Finger Rock, a new restaurant, will celebrate its grand opening at 4 p.m. today at Ushuaia’s dance club and bar.

“When people see it, they’re just absolutely amazed,” owner Alex Gray said Wednesday.

The restaurant’s name has significant meaning to Gray.

The owner credits his grandfather with helping him get started in business and even the name Ushuaia’s is in honor of him. Gray’s grandparents used to vacation in Ushuaia, Argentina.

Finger Rock is the rock formation in Tucson, Ariz., where Gray’s grandparents lived.

The 3,000-square-foot addition to accommodate the kitchen and 100-seat restaurant comes complete with a fiber-optic, color-changing bar, custom-made carpeting and lights and plasma TVs for patrons to enjoy, Gray said.

“It’s very impressively done,” he said. The owner, family and friends did most of the renovations to the 103 Park St. location over a period of two years, hiring contractors only when required by law.

In adding the restaurant, Gray said the demographic of his business has changed, and he hopes it will diversify even more as people come and see the establishment. What used to be a dance club for mainly 18-25 year olds is becoming a venue for people in their 30s, Gray said.

“There is obviously a black eye on this venue,” the owner said. He said he is hopeful that will change as more people see the changes that have been made.

Currently about 22 people are employed at the restaurant, and Gray said he plans to hire an additional 12 to 20 employees.

The menu ranges from chicken tenders to lobster and includes an impressive array of side dishes and appetizers, according to the owner. In addition, everything is homemade.

“The lasagna is my great-aunt’s recipe,” Gray said.

Lobster is the most expensive item on the menu because the market price is high, Gray said. Prime rib, New York strip and rib eye steak meals with sides ring in at $14.99.

The full menu is available until 10 p.m., but bar food such as burgers and wings is available all the time. After 11 p.m., only people over 21 will be allowed in the restaurant area, similar to the policy at Margarita’s Mexican restaurant in Orono.

“Pretty much when the club’s open, you can get food,” Gray said. The restaurant also serves late night breakfast Thursday through Saturday.

Gray said he hopes eventually to hold a jazz brunch on Sundays once the kinks are worked out of the operation.