Baby’s restaurant opening in former drag club

The former Talbott Street Nightclub and its drag shows are long gone, but a restaurant that’s set to open in that space this summer plans to keep a bit of the old vibe alive.

Baby’s, at 2147 Talbott St., will offer a family-friendly retro atmosphere and a burgers-and-shakes menu while acknowledging the building’s history, said Kendall Lockwood, who owns Baby’s with local attorney Trevor Belden and a number of silent partners.

“We’re going to have a little bit of glitter and sparkle here and there,” Lockwood said. “We’re going to pay just a little homage to drag queens.”

Nightclub-inspired visual touches will show up in Baby’s logos, Lockwood said, and the restaurant might also display photos of drag queens.

Lockwood and Belden are also partners in The Ball & Biscuit, a cocktail bar at 331 Massachusetts Ave. that opened in 2010.

The Talbott Street spot, at the corner of Talbott and 22nd streets, has been in the works since last year. But when the Herron-Morton Place project was going through the city approvals process last June, details about the restaurant—including its name—hadn’t yet been determined.

The 4,200-square-foot restaurant will have indoor seating for about 82 patrons. A three-season pergola will offer seating for an additional 58 people, with additional outdoor seasonal seating for another 40.

An outdoor area will offer space for cornhole games and other activities, and décor will include indoor and outdoor murals.

Baby’s will offer both table service and take-out in a retro-diner atmosphere, “but more modern and just a touch more upscale,” Lockwood said. “We’re just trying to elevate the burger scene without making it too high-end.”

The menu will include smashburgers and fries and broasted, or pressure-fried, chicken. It will also offer alcoholic and non-alcoholic milkshakes, pre-mixed cocktails and vegetarian and vegan options.

The establishment will serve lunch and dinner seven days a week, Lockwood said, and the average price point for meals will be $12 to $15 per person.

Baby’s is leasing its space from local developer Gershman Partners, which acquired the property in October.

Local architecture/design firm Blackline Studio is the project designer.

The former Talbott Street Nightclub building, also known as the Power building, has been vacant since the club closed in 2017. Before that the building housed a grocery store followed by a variety of other businesses, including a thrift shop, cafes and nightclubs.