OCALA, FL (352Today.com) – When First Avenue Bar & Bistro was announced, my first thought was immediate: This had to be special. It was taking over the former home of La Cuisine, the French restaurant whose farewell Facebook post was filled with hundreds of comments from locals who had marked birthdays, anniversaries, and ordinary Tuesday nights at its tables. La Cuisine’s chapter had been a meaningful one. The name on the door has changed. The culinary chapter on that corner has not closed.
Downtown property owner Don Gulling opened First Avenue Bar & Bistro to the public on October 20, 2026, at 48 SW 1st Avenue after buying the business from La Cuisine owners Patrice Perron and Elodie Guinard in July. On Wednesday, November 4, 2026, they held their ribbon-cutting ceremony steps away from the entrance downtown.
“We want to be a totally approachable family restaurant that offers excellent value and an elevated environment,” Gulling said. “It’s an approachable cuisine. It’s nothing off-menu and weird. It’s family food. It’s American comfort food.” The goal, he added, was to keep the corner in restaurant use rather than let the longtime dining spot go dark.
The building itself has been open for business far longer than any of its recent tenants. Speaking with Gulling, he mentioned that the building was constructed in the 1920s at the Fort King intersection; it once stood along what was then a main thoroughfare through Ocala. Early on, it operated as a horse-feed store, one of the practical commercial spaces that filled downtown after the city rebuilt itself in brick following the 1883 fire. Over the decades, it changed hands and uses, remaining a working part of the commercial district. When Patrice Perron and Elodie Guinard bought it around 2008, they renovated the space and opened La Cuisine in 2009; for the next 17 years, that was the only version most Ocalans knew. Look up inside the bar or main dining room today, and the cedar ceiling slats still date to the 1920s, the same ones that have been there since the building first opened for trade.
Gulling, who already holds other downtown properties, said the chance to keep the building in restaurant use arrived quickly. “Patrice and Elodie came to us in May and told us they wanted to move on,” he said. “I’m a big believer in downtown. I have other properties downtown. And so when they came to me, literally the next day, I said, ‘yes’… We finished the acquisition in July and then started construction and renovations immediately.”
On the first night open to the public, October 20, the room filled. “Seeing it brought back to life, and seeing that vibrancy, and hearing the glasses clink, and seeing the smiles on the faces, and seeing the bartenders shake drinks, and the energy and excitement, that was the best,” Gulling said.
He chose a clean break from the French concept and the La Cuisine name. “We felt no matter what we did, we would disappoint people because if we changed it a little bit, they wouldn’t like that. If we changed it a lot, they wouldn’t like that,” he explained. “So we felt it was kind of a trap if we kept it the same. However, they’re going to feel like the food is very similar. We’re American comfort food with an American twist.”
The lounge carries a new vibe, according to Gulling, and while the bar top is the same one that was there before, only extended, regulars still remark that it feels different, along with the lighting, music, and overall layout.
The result is an intentionally approachable place. “Don’t think you have to wear a suit and tie. Come as you are,” he said.
When guests first walk in, they pass a large wine cooler and Japanese raku-inspired pottery and artwork along the entryway walls before reaching a top-shelf bar where bartenders in checkered polos shake cocktails with wide smiles.
Sitting down to dinner myself, I found the lighting to be as comfortable as the soft indie rock echoing against the walls. Both the indoor and outdoor seating use white tablecloths with artwork along the walls that fits the equine community well, with various paintings of livestock and horses. The service was attentive and exceptional, as the server not only explained the menu well, but it was as if they knew each dish intimately.
As an appetizer, I chose pan-roasted mussels. The mussels arrived in a small, crowded black pot, shells open and gleaming against a tangle of fresh herbs that spilled over the rim like a loose bouquet. Beneath the herbs, pale rings of onion and soft pieces of tomato sat in a shallow, golden broth that caught the light in glossy pools. Beside the pot, four thick slices of toasted bread leaned against one another on a matte black plate, their crusts deep brown and their interiors still pale and airy. The whole arrangement looked rustic and immediate, as if it had just left the kitchen and expected to be eaten with your hands and the bread while the broth was still warm.
For dinner, I opted for the pan-seared filet, which arrived with gnocchi, wild mushrooms, and a truffle demi-glaze. As for the filet, it was love at first bite. Its smoky, seductive flavor begs you to savor each buttery bite as it nearly glides along your palate mid-chew, the truffle demi-glaze pooling underneath in a dark, earthy sheen that the wild mushrooms drink up and the gnocchi absorbs into. This is not a meal you rush; it is a meal you relax alongside as your taste buds are transported away from the typical trappings of dining culture and into a space that asks: What if pleasure required nothing more of you than your full, unhurried attention?
For dessert, I chose seasonal cobbler. Apple cinnamon was the flavor, and it was served with melty vanilla bean ice cream that was perfect and warm over a generous helping of fresh, sizzling, Southern cobbler that served as more than just dessert. It was a punctuation mark for an experience that felt like a brief escape into this new bustling culinary chapter for First Avenue Bar and Bistro and its home in downtown Ocala.
