This week’s announcement that Petit & Keet Bar and Grill, a new “polished-casual” restaurant and bar located at 1620 Market Street, will be opening on May 18th got me to thinking.

Is this area around Market Street/Rodney Parham suddenly one of Little Rock’s culinary hot spots? Before you start giggling, think about it for a second.

With city limits now extending way into the Chenal, this area is pretty much Midtown. And sure, it’s still not considered a trendy area of town (like a Hillcrest or Heights), but look at all of the eateries within a few blocks of each other. Some are old and some are new … but one thing is for certain, there’s a ton of variety.

Just a stone’s throw from Petit & Keet is Table 28, one of our more upscale restaurants in town, serving up anything from bone marrow to seared scallops to quail lollipops.  Sure, Flavor or India just went belly-up, but the renovated Market Street Shopping Center just down the street from Table 28 is home to the iconic Franke’s Cafeteria, as well as take-home meal specialist Diane’s Gourmet, and Mickey’s Cakes & Sweets.

There’s even a Starbuck’s, but, hell, there’s a Starbucks on every corner.

In the mood for breakfast? B Side is on Market Street … and just across the road on Rodney Parham is Delicious Temptations.

For those digging buffets, Asia Buffet recently opened and the ever popular Al Seraj is only a 1/4-mile away.  While The Pantry West isn’t on Market Street, it too is extremely close by, and, as we all know, rivals any restaurant in town. Heck, don’t forget about Taj Mahal, a place many consider to be the best Indian food in Little Rock. There’s even Indian Grocers right by the aforementioned Franke’s.

My point is this … there’s a wide range of culinary offerings in a 3-4 block radius in a very centralized area of town. To me, that’s something to get excited about.