Chilitos, Gambier’s new restaurant from Fiesta Mexicana owner Jose Avalos, is about to open in the basement of 112 Gaskin Avenue. After health inspection delays due to a water heating snafu, Chief Business Officer Mark Kohlman says that Avalos plans for a soft opening today.

Chilitos will be the fourth restaurant in town after the Kenyon Inn, Village Inn, and Gambier Deli. The interior has already been fully set up, including the bar. 

However, Kohlman noted, Chilitos still cannot have food and liquor delivered for sale until they get their liquor license.

Chilitos marks the end of construction on Gaskin Avenue, which has included the relocation of the Village Market, Black Box Theater, Bookstore, new Farr apartments and study spaces. After just one semester of use, the school began renovation of the two study spaces at the end of the summer, which were completed the first week of this semester.

“The two study spaces will remain as planned until the library is in use again,” Kohlman said.

The basement next to Chilitos, where the Student Accessibility Support Services (SASS) Office was located last year, may be used as a new wellness center this year. The space was used as an administrative office during the summer. “The school is still trying to keep it flexible,” Kohlman said, “to make sure that during the academic year it can be full of students and in the summertime it can be used for things like summer conferences.”

The basement space also contains three offices and a small reception area, which Student Affairs Division and the Cox Health and Counseling Center are still figuring out how best to utilize. “This area may be some programming space related to wellness connected to the health center and the counseling center,” Kohlman said. A forthcoming discussion between the Office of Student Engagement and the Peer Counselors will look to settle the matter.