TRANSITIONS

The Jackson, Miss.-based Newk’s Eatery minichain of “fresh casual restaurants” opened a Jonesboro franchise on Monday at 3410 E. Johnson Ave., with an official ribbon-cutting with the Chamber of Commerce and local dignitaries today. Hours are 11 a.m.-10 p.m. daily; the phone number is (870) 336-0663. Visit newks.com or the Jonesboro store’s Facebook page. Newk’s also has locations at 4317 Warden Road in North Little Rock and 1412 Higdon Ferry Road in Hot Springs.

And we’ve finally gotten word on the Little Rock location of Newk’s that has been in the works for at least a couple of years: We spotted a want ad in Sunday’s paper looking for managers for North Little Rock and west Little Rock, and a little digging turned up a physical address - 314 S.University Ave., Suite 180, in the Park Avenue mixed-used development. It’s tentatively targeted to open by early February. We’ll keep you posted.

And speaking of chains, construction has begun on the first central Arkansas outlet of Huntington Beach, Calif.-based BJ’s Restaurant and Brewhouse in the Shackleford Crossings shopping center, 2600 block of South Shackleford Road, Little Rock. We haven’t yet been able to come up with a target opening date, but we’ll keep you posted on that one, too.

Jay Baxter, on the first anniversary of his opening Jay’s Pizza in the River Market’s Ottenheimer Market Hall, 400 President Clinton Ave., Little Rock, will resume downtown delivery service - something he offered when the place first opened but the plug on which he pulled after only a couple of months - 5-9 p.m. Monday-Thursday and 5-10 p.m. Friday-Saturday. And he is expanding his menu to include pasta and a couple of Italian entrees (for delivery or curbside pick-up; Saturday’s special, for example, was beef filled Cannelloni baked in Bolognese) with the help of Raul “Chico” Arcentales, the pasta chef who worked for Baxter at the now-defunct Hot Springs Italian restaurant Pompeii. (Arcentales, a native of Ecuador, has even more impressive credentials: He worked with the late Chef Rosario Patti, who founded Hot Springs’ Belle Arti, and had previously worked for Patti in New York in the mid-’90s.) The menu was still being worked out at deadline; the phone number is (501) 374-5297, or visit the Facebook page, facebook.com/JaysPizzaLR.

And speaking of pizza, we have an update on DeLuca’s Pizzeria Napoletana, 407 Park Ave., Hot Springs: the listed phone number, (501) 609-9002, no longer returns a “not a working number” response from the phone company, but, as of deadline, now provides a voice mail message from a gentleman with an accent that is recognizably from Brooklyn (the restaurant sign, done up like a New York subway marker, refers to “Brooklyn Bridge, Hot Springs Station” with the phone number in little colored circles). That, along with a Nov. 14 posting of “Almost time to open the doors” on the Facebook page, tinyurl.com/k3hj9s4, suggests the opening is imminent. We’ll continue riding herd.

An outlet of Moe’s Southwest Grill opens today in the food court, in the space formerly occupied by Backyard Burgers, of Park Plaza, West Markham Street and University Avenue. Along with the build-your-own burrito/ quesadilla menu, there will be one of those new-fangled Coca-Cola Freestyle soda fountains with 100 drink options.Hours will be 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Monday-Saturday, noon-6 p.m. Sunday. The phone number is (501) 490-1990 or visit moes.com.

And this reminder: New Orleans’ Southern Food & Beverage Museum will hold a special fundraiser, 6:30-9 p.m. today at the Capital Hotel, 111 W. Markham St., Little Rock,toward a permanent exhibit on Arkansas’ food and beverage industry “and the traditions that have influenced our indigenous tastes.” It will be part of the museum’s planned “Gallery of the South: States of Taste,” 15,000 square feet dedicated to exhibits on the food and foodways of each Southern state. It’ll cost you $125 to snack on special pairings of Arkansas fare with Presqu’ile wines. Call (501) 374-7474 or email info@capitalhotel.com or morris.leslie@sbcglobal.net.

We haven’t been getting the usual flood of information on where, if you’re going out for Thanksgiving dinner, you should go. But we have a couple of possibilities:

We know Arthur’s Prime Steakhouse and Oceans at Arthur’s in the Village at Rahling Road, 27 Rahling Circle, Little Rock, will be offering a Thanksgiving Day buffet, 10 a.m-3:30 p.m. Price is $29.50, $14.50 for kids 7-12, $7.50 for kids 6 and under. Call (501) 821-1838 or visit arthursprimesteakhouse.com.

The Mark Twain Riverboat, the latest Arkansas River dinner-and-cruise operation, will offer a “traditional holiday feast with all the trimmings,” including “the main course catered by Honey Baked Ham Co.,” while cruising the Arkansas River. There will be two such cruises: 1-3 p.m. and 5-7 p.m. Board at 100 E. Riverfront Park Drive, North Little Rock. Cost is $45 per person and yes, reservations are required - call (501) 372-5777 or visit DAMRiverboat.com.

Most, if not all, the major hotels will have their usual Thanksgiving buffets at prices that in past years ranged from $15 to $50. (We listed the prix fixe meal at Ashley’s at the Capital a couple of weeks ago.) Keep your eyes peeled for the ads or call the hotel of your choice to make a reservation.

And if you’re going to be in Northwest Arkansas for Thanksgiving, The Hive in the 21c Museum Hotel, 200 N.E. A St., Bentonville (thehivebentonville.com), will feature a prix fixe feast from Executive Chef Matt McClure, noon-8 p.m., that will include (appetizers) sweet potato gnocchi with brown butter and sage, pumpkin soup with pepitas and spiced cream and roasted pear salad with watercress, pecans and buttermilk curd; (main courses) Tagliolini ($49), an egg-noodle pasta, with shiitake mushrooms, butternut squash and almonds; salmon ($52) served with acorn squash gratin, Brussels sprouts and beets; beef brisket ($53) accompanied by potatoes, carrots and bread and butter cabbage; and of course, smoked turkey ($54) with cornbread stuffing, pole beans, gravy, whipped potato and cranberries. We won’t even tempt you with the desserts. You’ll have to order your alcoholic beverages a la carte. Call (479) 286-6575 to make reservations.

Has a restaurant opened - or closed - near you in the last week or so? Does your favorite eatery have a new menu? Is there a new chef in charge? Drop us a line. Call (501) 399-3667 or (501) 378-3513, or send a note to Restaurants, Weekend Section, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, 121 E. Capitol Ave., Little Rock, Ark. 72201. Send email to: eharrison@arkansasonline.com