"Fixer Upper" stars Chip and Joanna Gaines are at the helm of a home improvement empire that includes a hit HGTV show, quarterly magazine, real estate company, and paint, rug, wallpaper and furniture line - but they're not done yet.
The couple are are making progress on their forthcoming restaurant, housed in an 100-year-old building in Waco, Texas formerly known as Elite Café.
Joanna first announced their new endeavor, set to open later in 2017, in a blog post last year.
"Our new restaurant is opening in 2017 which will serve breakfast, brunch and lunch," she shared. "Chip has wanted a breakfast joint for years and he finally found the perfect spot for it, and I'm not going to lie, he is also super excited about serving ham sandwiches and bacon. The Elite Café was one of the oldest restaurants in Waco, but it closed down last year and we are excited about bringing it back to life."
According to Southern Living, the creative duo purchased the historic eatery last year, and after auctioning the contents to benefit Mission Waco's Jubilee Food Market, they began renovating the space.
"The restaurant itself is literally one big giant kitchen," Chip recalled to Southern Living. "When we first got in there, it was all the things you can imagine-dingy, musky. But if I took you in there today, you'd be like 'Oh! This is so clean, everything smells so great.' Those are a few benefits of a little bit of elbow grease and hard work on the front end."
Several months later, the couple announced the official plan for the restaurant, and after removing the original sign, posted a message to their fans on the billboard outside: "We'll let you know when breakfast is ready. - Chip"
"The Elite Café is going to be a breakfast joint," Chip said. "I've always been a breakfast connoisseur. I always do a heavy, bigger breakfast, but Jo is the exact opposite. She was kind enough to come with me on this one, and we are going to do up a breakfast joint here in town."
He added, "Now, everybody that comes in tells me how smart I was to have bought this property. Six months ago, I wasn't getting as many encouragements. But the restaurant has some serious history that we're going to tap into."
According to Wide Open Country, the Elite Restaurant first opened its doors 97 years ago and was a favorite stop for those traveling between Dallas and Austin. According to the Waco Tribune, Elvis Presley even dined there when he was stationed at Fort Hood.
However, After years of success, they closed their doors for good in Feb. 2016 due to chronically low sales.
Meanwhile, Chip and Joanna recently settled a million-dollar lawsuit against their Magnolia Silos property. The HGTV stars were hit by a lawsuit in October when they installed a fence on their neighbor's property without consent. Court documents from McLennan County, Texas reveal that the pair placed the fence to block the parking area during the annual Magnolia Silobration event.
Hear Properties manager and owner of the parking lot Daron Farmer initially planned to charge $10 for parking in the area. However, Chip decided to block off the entire area instead, which led Farmer to file a lawsuit. In addition to compensation between $200,000 and $1 million, Farmer asked for a restraining order to remove the fence.
"A settlement has been reached," Head Properties lawyer David G. Tekell said in a press statement. "It will not be filed in court."
