The Lease Clause Behind Dellagio's Newest Bowl of Pho

Wagyu is back on the menu at 7988 Via Dellagio Way. Before, it was served as shabu-shabu at a restaurant called Nabe. Now it is served as wagyu pho at Phở Bar Vietnamese Kitchen, which opened in the same space in July 2026.

A restaurant opening where another closed is ordinary on Restaurant Row. This one went differently because of a sentence in someone else's lease. The tenants at Dellagio Town Center work under rules most diners never see. Since a Miami investor bought the center in 2025 with a public promise to re-lease it, those rules have been shaping a larger share of what opens there.

A Japanese Exclusive, a Few Doors Down

Dragonfly Robata Grill & Sushi sits at 7972 Via Dellagio Way, practically next door to 7988. Orlando Weekly reported in December 2025 that Dragonfly holds an exclusive on Japanese cuisine at the center. In practice, the landlord has agreed not to lease another unit to a Japanese concept that would compete with it.

That clause shaped Lewis Lin's restaurant from the start. Lin opened a wagyu shabu-shabu house called Nabe with owners Khoa Nguyen and Keren Swan. Because of Dragonfly's exclusive, the restaurant had to rename itself Hinabe and switch from shabu-shabu to hot pot. Orlando Weekly reported the closure on December 9, 2025. At that point, the three planned to work with the landlord and Dragonfly toward an agreement, and Orlando Weekly noted that any deal might require a total change of concept.

Exclusives like this are common in shopping centers, and they rarely become public. This one did because a restaurant had to change its name and its menu to comply.

What Fits Inside the Rule

By July 2026, Phở Bar had opened in the same space. It is the second location for a restaurant that started at 1012 E. Colonial Drive in Mills 50. Vietnamese cooking is outside a Japanese-cuisine exclusive, and the menu shows how much ground that leaves. The West Orange Times & Observer listed a house special pho, a wagyu pho, a shrimp noodle bowl and a pork chop rice plate. It also listed a kids' menu and teas including Thai tea, taro milk tea, fruit tea and orange honey tea.

None of the reporting says the exclusive decided who took the space. Owners for the Dr. Phillips location have not been named in local press either. Still, a broth-centered menu with a premium wagyu option now fills a unit where a similar idea under a Japanese label had to keep changing.

Check the hours before you go. The July opening report listed 5 to 10 p.m. daily and gave the address as Suite 100. Phở Bar's own locations page now lists Suite 104, hours of 11:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m., and closed on Wednesdays. That points to lunch service added since opening, but the restaurant's own site is the one to trust on any given night.

The Owner Who Bought In to Re-Lease

The turnover makes more sense with the building's ownership in view. In March 2025, Miami-based Core Investment Management bought Dellagio Town Center for $37.5 million. The center is a 109,489-square-foot multi-tenant property, and at the time of the sale its best-known restaurants included Dragonfly, Fleming's Prime Steakhouse and Peperoncino Cucina. CORE's principal and director of leasing, Michael Lohmann, described the plan in plain terms:

"Our goal is to revitalize Dellagio through active leasing and management, ensuring it once again becomes a primary destination and a cornerstone of the community."

The center's own website now describes a CORE-led transformation built on tenant curation, aesthetic improvements and community engagement. It does not lay out plans for any particular storefront. Active leasing has a practical effect. Every vacancy goes to a tenant whose concept fits within the agreements already signed with its neighbors. Over the 18 months since the sale, the Via Dellagio Way changes line up like this:

1. March 2025. CORE buys Dellagio Town Center for $37.5 million.
2. December 2025. Orlando Weekly reports that Hinabe has closed at 7988 Via Dellagio Way, following its name and concept changes.
3. July 2026. Phở Bar Vietnamese Kitchen opens in the former Hinabe space.
4. August 24, 2026. Big Fin Seafood Kitchen closes at 8046 Via Dellagio Way after nearly 17 years.

Across W. Sand Lake Road, a different owner handled a similar need to refresh with a renovation. Vines Grille & Wine Bar opened at 7533 W. Sand Lake Road in 2003. In February 2026 it reopened as Vines by H. under The H Hospitality Group, with Executive Chef Omer Yildiz, formerly executive sous chef at The H Orlando. The restaurant kept its live jazz and its approachable menu. It is open 4 to 11 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays. When one operator controls the room, the identity can carry over. At Dellagio, a closed unit goes to a new tenant, and lease terms limit which concepts can take it.

The 8046 Question

Big Fin is now the open question. The boat-to-table restaurant was known for fresh seafood, oysters and steaks, and it closed on Monday, August 24, 2026. As of early October, no local report has named a successor for 8046 Via Dellagio Way, and CORE has not announced plans for that unit.

Dragonfly's exclusive is the only one that has been reported publicly. Any other exclusives that may cover the steakhouse at 8030 or the Italian kitchen at 7988, Suite 108, sit in leases nobody has published. So the next tenant at 8046 cannot be predicted from outside the building. The Hinabe story shows only that the person picking that tenant has to work within rules already in place.

One practical point for anyone planning a dinner around the center's website: Dellagio's online directory still lists Big Fin and does not yet show Phở Bar.

Open at Dellagio This Month

This roster comes from each restaurant's own website or a recent local report. It does not use the center's directory.

• Dragonfly Robata Grill & Sushi, 7972 Via Dellagio Way, taking reservations into October 2026.
• Phở Bar Vietnamese Kitchen, 7988 Via Dellagio Way, Suite 104, closed on Wednesdays according to its own site.
• Peperoncino Cucina, 7988 Via Dellagio Way, Suite 108, in the same building as Phở Bar and featured in a September/October 2026 local magazine.
• Fleming's Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar, 8030 Via Dellagio Way, Building F.
• London House and The Bond Room, 8000 Via Dellagio Way, a culinary and social club.
• Norman's Orlando, 7924 Via Dellagio Way, taking reservations for early October 2026.
• Paddywagon Irish Pub, 7940 Via Dellagio Way, Suite 118.
• ANQOR Lounge, 8060 Via Dellagio Way, Unit 106, serving food and drink alongside hookah.
• Nola's Ice Cream, which lists daily hours on its own site but does not give a suite number.

Dragonfly and Fleming's were both named as anchors when the center sold in 2025, and both are still operating. The changes so far have come at the units around them, 7988 first and now 8046.

At Going Luxury Group, we track details like these because what opens down the road from your home is often decided in a lease long before a sign goes up. If you live near Restaurant Row and want to understand what changes along Sand Lake Road could mean for your property, contact us for a confidential conversation.

This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.