COVID forced these 2 businesses to delay opening. Now they are finally ready for uptown

Uptown Charlotte is about to add two more businesses to the newest tower in the Fifth Street Entertainment District.

Novelty House Rooftop and Havana Smoke & Reserve Social Club will open next month on the top two of five floors of Binaco Tower at 123 E. Fifth St., according to a news release from Novelty Smoke Group, which owns both businesses.

Novelty House and Havana Smoke were both scheduled to open last summer, but the pandemic nixed those plans. Havana Smoke is a cigar bar and Novelty House is a bar.

“It has been a waiting game but with the vaccine available to all adults now, warmer weather and looser gathering guidelines, we feel it’s the right time to open,” Ian Jones, who will lead both businesses, said in a statement. Jones was general manager of Bubble and Suite at the Epicentre on East Trade Street for a decade.

Neither business will have kitchens. Each floor is about 2,200 square feet, according to the release.

Havana Smoke & Reserve

Havana Smoke & Reserve will open next month on the fourth floor featuring a full bar serving Mezcal, a smokey tequila growing in popularity in the U.S., and also offer live entertainment on the weekend, the Observer previously reported.

Targeting cigar lovers from the uptown corporate crowd and business travelers, as well as locals, the cigar bar will feature daytime meeting and work space, a cigar concierge and membership levels from annual to day passes.

Craig Cass, owner of Tinder Box Charlotte, will serve as the cigar supplier.

Novelty House Rooftop

The open-air Novelty House Rooftop on the top floor will have changing floral décor and a full bar featuring over 40 specialty drinks, DJs on the weekends and catered brunch.

It hopes to appeal to women as a setting for bachelorette parties and girls’ night out.

“With an explosion of seasonal flowers serving as a backdrop, it’s our hope that Novelty House Rooftop will quickly become popular for private events and one of the most Instagrammable spots in the Queen City,” Jones said.

More about Binaco Tower

A restaurant also is expected to open this spring.

Saku Yakitori and Sushi Bar will open in a 1,330-square-foot ground floor space, the Observer previously reported.

Don Peadon with Peadon Finein, who is the interior designer of Binaco Tower, said construction of Saku’s space will be complete likely by the end of the month.

Officials with the restaurant did not immediately respond for comment by Friday about when Saku plans to open.

Binaco broke ground on the 13,000-square-foot building in summer 2018. Based in Charlotte, Binaco is a family-owned real estate and investment company, founded in 1977 by Gary and Bina Bhojwani. The company is led by their children, Vijay and Jaya.

Binaco also owns the building next door, which is home to Connolly’s, Prohibition and Sip.

This story was originally published April 9, 2021 at 1:28 PM.