The Bahama Breeze that opened at Cross Creek Mall in February 2024 is getting a new identity: Chuy's Tex-Mex Grill. The Austin-founded chain will take over the restaurant's spot at 570 Cross Creek Mall in Fayetteville, with an opening expected in late September.
A Chuy's representative confirmed the Fayetteville conversion to WhatNow, saying Chuy's will bring its Tex-Mex concept to the city. No exact opening date has been announced yet, but the company has said it plans to open the new location before fall ends. The move caps months of speculation in Fayetteville, where residents had been watching to see which Darden Restaurants brand would ultimately claim the site after Bahama Breeze's closure was announced.
Fayetteville's Bahama Breeze was one of 14 locations Darden selected in February for conversion into other restaurant concepts, part of a broader decision to discontinue the Bahama Breeze brand altogether. Darden had already said it would permanently close 14 other Bahama Breeze locations by April, while converting the remaining sites — including Fayetteville's — into different Darden-owned brands over the following 12 to 18 months, according to a PR Newswire announcement. The Fayetteville restaurant had only been open as Bahama Breeze for about two and a half years.
How Word Got Out Before the Official Confirmation
Locals reportedly got their first hint of the change when Chuy's posted a job listing for a restaurant manager at the Cross Creek Mall address in July, a detail that Fayetteville Today flagged before local media and corporate sources confirmed the project. FayToday News also reported the upcoming Chuy's conversion on Instagram, feeding months of community chatter about which Darden concept might land at the mall.
Once open, the new Fayetteville restaurant will serve the same made-from-scratch Tex-Mex menu Chuy's is known for elsewhere, including fajitas, enchiladas, burritos, tacos, and queso. The chain prepares its food from scratch daily and makes its tortillas by hand, and its menu is anchored by its signature Ritas and a creamy jalapeño dip. Chuy's was founded in Austin in 1982 and, per its careers website, now operates more than 100 restaurants across 15 states.
A Mall With Deep Pockets and Steady Foot Traffic
The conversion traces back to Darden's $605 million all-cash acquisition of Chuy's Holdings, completed in October 2024 at $37.50 per share, which folded the Tex-Mex chain into Darden's multi-brand portfolio alongside Olive Garden and LongHorn Steakhouse. Because Darden already owned the Cross Creek Mall outparcel through Bahama Breeze, converting the existing site lets the company expand Chuy's footprint in North Carolina without building from the ground up.
That real estate happens to sit in one of the region's busiest retail corridors. Cross Creek Mall draws more than 5.4 million visitors annually and maintained 99% occupancy with sales exceeding $480 per square foot as of mid-2025, according to figures reported via PropertyShark. The mall's trade area serves a daytime population of nearly 150,000 residents within five miles and sits near Fort Liberty, which supports more than 60,000 active-duty personnel and generates over $9.5 billion in annual economic impact, per CBL Properties. Mall owner CBL Properties also closed a $78 million refinancing loan on the property in July 2025, replacing debt that was set to mature the following month and extending maturities out five years.
Joining a Growing Restaurant Row
Chuy's will join an expanding lineup of dining options near the mall, including LongHorn Steakhouse on the property itself, KPOT Korean BBQ & Hot Pot, Twin Peaks along Skibo Road, and a US Foods CHEF'STORE outparcel — part of a corridor that handles more than 150,000 vehicles daily, according to the same Fayetteville Today report. Chuy's had already established a North Carolina presence in Raleigh's North Hills, Cary's Parkside Town Commons, and Charlotte's Waverly development before setting its sights on Fayetteville.
The conversion also comes as Darden reports strong financial footing overall. The Orlando-based parent company operated more than 2,100 locations nationwide with roughly 207,000 employees and posted record sales led by Olive Garden and LongHorn Steakhouse as of this month, according to the Orlando Business Journal. Exactly how much remodeling the Caribbean-themed Bahama Breeze space will need to become a Chuy's — known for its eclectic, colorful Tex-Mex aesthetic — remains unclear, as does the precise late-September opening date.
