From brakes to breakfast: New restaurant from local caterer coming to Lexington
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- Daren Turner purchased the Stuttgart Motors building at 1305 W. Main St. in July 2025.
- DaRae Marcum will open DaRae and Friends at The Commons serving breakfast and lunch.
- The restaurant plans seating for 20 inside, outdoor patio seating, and available parking.
A new restaurant is coming to a high-visibility corner of Main Street that has, until recently, been occupied by an auto repair shop.
The former Stuttgart Motors building at 1305 W. Main St. was purchased in July 2025 by Daren Turner, who is now in the process of renovating the property to become a locally operated restaurant at the gateway to his booming The Commons development.
After a remodel, Turner said the spot will house a new restaurant from popular Lexington caterer DaRae Marcum.
The new restaurant will be called DaRae & Friends at The Commons, Marcum said.
“I’m excited about it,” she said. “It will be fun.”
They hope to open in August or September, she said. The restaurant will be open for breakfast and lunch, with prepared grab-and-go items from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. It will be closed on Sunday.
Marcum, who is known for “Catering Done the Southern Way,” said the menu will feature many of the Southern hospitality-based favorites from her 30-plus years serving events around Lexington.
“I’m still working on it, but there will be some healthier options, some Southern food, seasonal items, desserts and treats,” she said. “I might add afternoon teas.”
Marcum suffered two strokes in 2014, was diagnosed with atrial fibrillation and is looking for a less stressful working environment but plans to continue catering and may offer pick-up options at the new place.
Turner said the restaurant will keep the look of a filling station or body shop but have a “really cool Southern twist to it.”
It will have seating for 20 inside, with outside seating on a patio. Parking is available at the restaurant as well as inside Turner Commons at the RD1 Distillery next door.
The Commons is a mixed-use development that will have an entertainment venue called The Rail, opening this year, as well as an entertainment district with outdoor space, restaurant, luxury short-term rentals and more across 42 acres.
A Coldstone Creamery is expected to open in The Commons this year, and other retail and dining tenants are expected to be announced soon.
Marcum previously opened Hayden’s Stockyard Eatery in the newly built Blue Grass Stockyards in 2017. That restaurant closed during the COVID pandemic shutdown in 2020.
