Two years after acquiring the century-old building that once housed Hall’s Feed Store, the co-owners of Propagate Social House opened Hall’s on Fifth, Apopka’s first food hall, with a May 14 soft opening.
Hall’s on Fifth gives patrons an opportunity to experience never-before-introduced menus in the community in a thriving downtown area. The food hall has six vendors offering different unique menus from made-from-scratch empanadas to vegan soul food, as well as a craft cocktail bar. The establishment can seat 150 people with indoor dining, a private dining room and an outdoor patio featuring a mural for photo opportunities.
Hall’s on Fifth is the latest addition to the slate of businesses populating the Fifth Street/Main Street area such as Propagate Social House, co-owned by Lusia and Derek Donovan, Joanna Timm and Michael Fonner, and Ella Duke and her husband Jay Kleinrichert.
“When you look at the mural that we have [at Hall’s on Fifth], it says, ‘With love from Apopka,’ this is really our love letter to Apopka,” Duke said. “When we moved here four years ago, we fell in love with the city. We fell in love with the city’s potential, and this has truly been a labor of love. So to see the community show up and literally make lines to be the first to get in, it’s just so heartwarming.”
By establishing Hall’s on Fifth, the Propagate team is trying to create more buzz in the downtown area just like they did with Propagate and the Friday night Market on Fifth, Duke said.
All of the Hall’s on Fifth vendors were curated by the Propagate team.
“They’re small business owners, they hold a lease for the space that they work in,'” Duke said. “We went out and we hand-picked every single one of those vendors specifically because we wanted to have things that didn’t already exist in Apopka. Our vendors, what they offer, it’s not available anywhere else in Apopka. So not only are we not competing with any existing businesses, we’re also bringing a new, different type of culinary flair to the area.”
Inside the building, across the hall from a private dining room—which used to be the feed store’s hay room—is a preserved piece of Apopka history: a desk that belonged to the Hall family. A fan of mid-century modern architecture and design, Duke opted to purchase the furniture piece from Chris Hall. Above the desk are decades-old black-and-white photos of Apopka. This area will be a serving station for the private dining area.
“It’s very sentimental to us that old Apopka is now looking into this beautiful private dining room where people are getting together to experience the new culinary options that they have,” Duke said.
Will and Sonya Adkison own Sweet & Salty Island Grindz, which serves Hawaiian barbecue and Filipino cuisine, a reflection of their heritage. Having another location at Henry’s Depot Food Hall in Sanford, the Adkinsons were contacted by the Propagate team to see if Sweet and Salty Island Grindz was interested in being a Hall’s on Fifth vendor.
“I couldn’t say no,” Will Adkinson said. “It’s a good offer and a good option for us.”
Juan Soto, proprietor of Empanadas & Co., learned about Apopka’s growth and the development of a food hall in the city spurred him to apply for space for a second establishment in Hall’s on Fifth. Empanadas & Co. has another location inside the Plant Street Market in downtown Winter Garden.
“I know that Ella had mentioned about Apopka wanting to build a community in downtown, around Hall’s on Fifth,” Soto said. “We definitely wanted to be a part of it, and we’re excited that she chose us to come in here and be part of this amazing food hall that she has.”
Hall’s on Fifth reflects what community members have been asking for several years: a variety of food to choose from, said Valynn Sala-Diakanda, a business owner and 15-year Apopka resident. She frequents the Fifth Street area and participates in its several events, so she has been watching the development of Hall’s on Fifth.
“I just invite everyone to come out and try just be part of the experience, what the group here is trying to bring to Apopka and just support the local businesses here,” she said. “They’re just putting their love and energy and part into what they do, and the fact that they repurposed this facility—the before and after is truly amazing.”
The Apopka Chief is an award-winning weekly newspaper serving the greater Apopka area in Central Florida since 1923.
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