GRAND MEADOW — A couple is turning the frown upside down at what was formerly Grumpy’s Restaurant & Lounge.

Eric Bridge and his girlfriend, Skye Keller, will soon open The Bridge Club restaurant in the longtime Grumpy’s building, which closed in January 2012.

“He and I have been looking to do this for the last couple of months,” Keller said.

Opportunity knocked on the door when Keller and Bridge moved into a home in Stewartville, a home owned by the same man now leasing the restaurant building to the couple.

Bridge and Keller may be new to business ownership, but they’re no strangers to the food service industry. They have worked in restaurants for several years.

“This is our first business,” Keller said. “We just hope to do really well.”

Furthermore, Bridge is a certified executive chef and keeps his kitchen staff close. He can’t wait for the public to see what he has to offer.

Bridge and Keller aren’t afraid of work, either.

“We’re hoping to be slammed all the time, so we would like to have a couple more bartenders and waitresses,” Keller said.

While the layout of the building is already set up as a restaurant, Keller and Bridge are adding furniture and decorations and making a few renovations before opening. The layout may be about the same, but Bridge said the interior look is much different than Grumpy’s — unrecognizable from what it was. Bridge wants a fun, family atmosphere with activities such as pool, a shuffleboard and basketball game, too. And the business space is still set up for more than just fine dining or happy hour at the bar.

“We would love to do any receptions, any meetings,” Keller said. “We’ve got a big banquet room, so that will be open.”

One thing they have certainty about, though, is the food. Their heart and soul lie in the fine-dining aspect.

“I’m going to blow them away,” Bridge said, who has won Taste of Mower County the last two years in a row. “We’re going to give them stuff they’ve never tried.”

Keller mentioned all-you-can-eat prime rib specials, all-you-can-eat fish, pastas, wraps, burgers, salads and more.

“The prime rib is really good,” she said.

Bridge even plans to offer some Thai dishes, such as his Thai curry scallops. Furthermore, when the kitchen heats up for the first time, Bridge’s staff will be more than ready to go.

“I brought my own cooking crew,” Bridge said. “We’ve worked together for four or five years. I don’t like training new when I have a great supporting staff.”

Plenty of people would be nervous unlocking the doors on the first day, but not Bridge. He’s helped flip businesses before. It’s what he does.

If all goes well, the Bridge Club will be open by April 1.

A Facebook page for the restaurant is now available and details the progress, as well.