At the former Connell Corporate Park, the free and outdoor parts are open now. The 3-mile Trail, The Grove, free parking and leashed dogs are all welcome today, and Grain & Cane is serving dinner on Connell Drive. Most of the storefronts announced for District Drive are still listed as "coming soon." Several have passed the dates first announced for them, and Emberside Brewery has moved from fall to winter. The one full restaurant already open, Grain & Cane, belongs to Table & Banter Hospitality, the same group lined up to run Emberside, Rosa Azul and BASH. For now, Grain & Cane is the best way to see what District Drive's nightlife will be like.
The Campus Opened Before District Drive Did
Construction fencing makes The Park look unfinished, but much of it is already open. The Park's FAQ says the campus is open to the public year-round, and visitors can use its parks, trails, restaurants and other amenities. Parking is free seven days a week in surface lots and a garage, with EV charging available. Leashed dogs are allowed in the outdoor public areas.
The Trail is a 3-mile loop around the edge of the 185-acre campus, with seating areas and sport courts along the way. The Grove is open to the public. The Park describes it as an open arena with outdoor spaces for working, eating, socializing and events.
The businesses already open here came with the office campus. The Connell Company's March 2026 announcement lists the 176-room Embassy Suites Hotel, a 112,000-square-foot Life Time, Starbucks, Grain & Cane and FIELDHOUSE as existing operators. FIELDHOUSE operates at 200 and 400 Connell Drive. It is a membership gym for adults 18 and over. It offers open gym time, personal and small-group training, Pilates, yoga, sauna and recovery services. Its homepage currently advertises a free seven-day pass.
These places have been here for a while. Until District Drive opens, the Trail and Grain & Cane are the main reasons a non-tenant has to drive onto the campus.
Grain & Cane Is a Preview of the Operator Behind Most of District Drive's Nightlife
Grain & Cane is an American restaurant and bar at 250 Connell Drive. Its menu draws on regional and traditional dishes, with seasonal cocktails, craft beer and wine. It describes itself as part of Table & Banter Hospitality. The Park lists its hours as 11:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Sunday.
Grain & Cane matters more than a typical restaurant listing because of its owner. The March 10, 2026 announcement said Table & Banter Hospitality will own and operate three of the largest entertainment and dining venues planned for District Drive:
- Emberside Brewery, which will brew its beer on site
- Rosa Azul, a Mexican restaurant with hand-crafted cocktails and a taqueria serving through a window onto the outdoor garden and playground
- BASH, a speakeasy-style venue with a wood-fired steakhouse, event spaces, several bars including a hi-fi listening bar, and 14 duckpin bowling lanes the release calls among New Jersey's first, plus pool tables, darts and shuffleboard
The same release says these concepts total about 60,000 square feet. The Park's page for The Lawn says the lawn will have easy access to the MODO HiFi Listening Room, Emberside Brewery, Rosa Azul and BASH. It also lists outdoor fitness classes, ParkLife events and winter ice skating among its year-round programming.
All three venues are planned around one outdoor space, and one company runs all three. So District Drive's evening scene will largely come from the operator that already runs Grain & Cane. Table & Banter also runs a Grain & Cane food truck. The Park's food truck page says it appears at local events and fundraisers and can be booked for private events.
Where Each District Drive Business Stands Now
The March announcement said six new retailers would begin moving into The District in July 2026, and the Table & Banter venues would start opening in fall 2026. The table compares those targets with how each business is listed on The Park's site and the businesses' own pages as of mid-October 2026.
| Business | What it is | Earlier target | Current listing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Four Spoons Ice Cream Company | Family-owned ice cream shop with 30-plus flavors and froyo | July 2026 | "Opening Summer 2026," hours coming soon, 700 District Drive, Suite A |
| Doner Shack | Mediterranean-inspired kebabs and street food | July 2026 | Coming soon, 700 District Drive, Suite D |
| Cafe Exchange | Two-story café with coffee, food and an evening wine bar | July 2026 | Its own site says November 2026, at 500 District Drive |
| Prime IV Hydration & Wellness | IV vitamin infusion studio | July 2026 | Hours TBD |
| Dogtopia | Dog daycare, boarding and spa | July 2026 | Coming soon, 500 District Drive, Suite G |
| Greatness Wins | Athletic apparel brand, first flagship store | July 2026 | Coming soon, 500 District Drive, Suite E |
| Emberside Brewery | On-site craft brewery | Fall 2026 | "Opening Winter 2026" |
| Rosa Azul | Mexican restaurant and taqueria | Fall 2026 | Coming soon |
| BASH | Steakhouse, duckpin bowling, bars | Fall 2026 | Coming soon, 800 District Drive |
| Boschetto | Upcoming District dining tenant | Not dated | Coming soon |
Two dates stand out. Cafe Exchange says on its own website that it is coming to The Park in November 2026, which makes it the closest firm date on the list. The announcement describes it as a social café with a special focus on community, books and the arts. Emberside has moved later. In December 2025, TAPinto Berkeley Heights reported that the brewery was set to open in fall 2026. The Park's Emberside page now says winter 2026.
Boschetto came later than the others. NJBIZ covered it on July 8, 2026 as a new addition to District Drive's lineup, and The Park's dining page still lists it as coming soon.
The Park's own pages don't agree on when the street itself opens. The District Drive page says it will open in phases beginning in August 2026. The District overview says September, and the tenant list says "Opening fall 2026." Read together, they describe a street opening one storefront at a time, with no single opening day.
Why the Storefronts Are Arriving Now
The order of openings follows the residents. RT500, a 179-apartment building at The Park, started leasing in June 2026, and its first residents moved in on August 1, 2026, according to The Park's September 2 announcement on PR Newswire. A second building, RT600, will add 149 more apartments, for 328 across the two buildings. The Park's Residences page says RT600 move-ins are planned for late fall 2027.
The Connell Company calls the project a $500 million redevelopment of a former office campus. The District takes up 60 acres and is designed around a walkable main street with about 160,000 square feet of retail, dining and entertainment. The same release says the campus offices are 97 percent occupied. District Drive's first customers will be office workers by day and RT500 residents in the evening. The rest of Berkeley Heights is the third group The Park is trying to attract. That is why the free parking and public-access policy matter to people who live off campus.
Using The Park Between Now and Winter
District Drive is still mostly closed, so the practical way to use The Park this season is to plan around what is open:
- Start on the Trail. The 3-mile loop goes around the whole campus. Leashed dogs are allowed, and parking is free on weekends too.
- Stop at The Grove, which is the part of the campus explicitly open for public visits. Its open amphitheater and outdoor seating work well as a break halfway around.
- End at Grain & Cane on Connell Drive. It stays open until 11 p.m. Monday through Saturday, so it works for a late dinner after the walk.
For scheduled events, check ParkLife Events, The Park's ticketed calendar. The calendar scheduled a Halloween Dog Parade on District Drive for October 25, with a costume contest and lawn games. Next is a Longevity Workshop on Tuesday, November 3, from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. at 400 Connell Drive. Tickets are $15. As of mid-October, no holiday dates were listed on the calendar, though The Lawn's programming includes winter ice skating.
You can also reach the campus without driving. The Park lists NJ Transit Bus 986, which runs to Summit and Plainfield.
Through November, Cafe Exchange is the one to watch. It is the first District Drive business with its own published opening month, and it will add daytime coffee and an evening wine bar close to where the Table & Banter venues are planned.
The Park is changing what's available on the Connell Drive side of Berkeley Heights, and those changes affect daily routines and home searches nearby. If you'd like to talk through what it means for your own plans, Birdsall Visentini Property Partners is glad to help. Schedule a consultation.
