Star Chef Plots Food Hall Takeover on Bellevue's Auto Row

Marcus Lalario and chef Brady Williams plan a summer 2026 food hall in Bellevue's Wilburton Auto Row; Sugar Shack Unlimited will run branding and operations.

Apr. 1, 2026 at 3:35pm

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Restaurateur Marcus Lalario and chef Brady Williams are teaming up on a new food hall headed for Bellevue's Auto Row in the Wilburton neighborhood, with a target opening in summer 2026. The project is billed as a multi-vendor hall with curated programming and a bar-forward setup that will act as an early-stage placemaking move in a larger redevelopment of the corridor.

Why it matters

The food hall is planned as an interim use to spark activity in Bellevue's Wilburton district as it transitions from a row of car dealerships into a transit-oriented, mixed-use neighborhood under the city's Wilburton Vision and updated land use code. If the summer 2026 timeline holds, this hall is poised to be one of the first high-profile retail and hospitality bets on the Eastside that year.

The details

Lalario's hospitality collective, Sugar Shack Unlimited, is slated to handle branding, design, marketing, day-to-day operations, and event activations for the hall. The food hall is planned for a portion of a KG Investment Properties assemblage along 116th Avenue NE that the company has been repositioning for mixed use. City permit records show a 'Wilburton Phase 0' application that would partially convert the existing auto dealership at 600 116th Ave NE into what is described as a destination food hall.

  • The food hall is targeting a summer 2026 debut.
  • The 'Wilburton Phase 0' application was filed with the city.

The players

Marcus Lalario

A restaurateur and the founder of the hospitality collective Sugar Shack Unlimited, which is slated to handle branding, design, marketing, day-to-day operations, and event activations for the new food hall.

Brady Williams

A chef who is teaming up with Lalario on the new food hall project. Williams is best known for his tenure at Canlis and a James Beard Award, followed by independent projects that have kept him on the Puget Sound dining radar.

Sugar Shack Unlimited

Lalario's hospitality collective that will handle the branding, design, marketing, day-to-day operations, and event activations for the new food hall.

KG Investment Properties

The company that has been repositioning the assemblage along 116th Avenue NE where the new food hall will be located, describing it as a 'Phase 0' interim use before longer-range projects.

City of Bellevue

The city where the new food hall will be located, as part of the Wilburton district's planned evolution from a row of car dealerships into a transit-oriented, mixed-use neighborhood.

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What’s next

Tenant lineups and a detailed opening schedule have not yet been released, and both the developers and Sugar Shack say vendors and programming will be announced as permits clear and design work wraps up.

The takeaway

The new food hall project in Bellevue's Wilburton district represents an early-stage placemaking move in the larger redevelopment of the corridor, aiming to spark activity and draw crowds as the area transitions from a row of car dealerships into a more mixed-use, transit-oriented neighborhood.