Good morning, Hopkinton! Welcome to the daily update we call Hopkinton Today — a quick recap of yesterday’s news, highlights of what’s on tap, and a photo of the day.

Burger restaurant to move into Chef’s Kitchen space

A new smashburger restaurant called Lacy Burger is set to replace Chef’s Kitchen on Main at 42 Main Street. FILE PHOTO/JERRY SPAR

The founder of Blue Square Pizza plans to open a new smashburger restaurant off Main Street, taking over the former location of Chef’s Kitchen on Main.

Troy Sproul confirmed that he had taken over 42 Main Street and is in the midst of renovating the space. He noted that flooring and tile are to be installed this weekend, and the space is to be painted Monday.

“A week from this [coming] Monday, I’m going to be setting up tables and chairs and smallware,” Sproul said when asked about how soon the restaurant will open. “We’re going to be ready to go, it just depends on the town.”

Sproul anticipated the restaurant, called Lacy Burger, could open by mid-November. However, delays in the final building inspection might push the opening into December.

According to Sproul, Lacy Burger will be more focused than Blue Square in terms of its menu, offering three burger options and shoestring French fries. “I’m really trying to make an artisan McDonald’s french fry,” Sproul remarked.

The reason the menu will be limited, the owner explained, is to focus on the final product: the smashburgers he said he has spent hours of research and development on at home. He added that the restaurant’s concept didn’t start to become a reality for him until 7th Street Burger opened in Boston in March.

“It was proof of concept of what I had been working on,” said Sproul, stating that 7th Street’s menu is more focused than his vision for Lacy Burger.

Once open, Lacy Burger will have seating capacity for 20 people and be operated by limited staff. Sproul said he has designed the restaurant to be tech-forward and incorporate things like self-ordering kiosks and artificial intelligence (AI) in the back-end operations. He further explained that the AI agents the restaurant will utilize help workers monitor output, stock and ordering. This, Sproul said, helps limit the need for managers.

“It creates a flat hierarchy and allows us to really kind of focus on creating a culture where it’s food- and employee-focused, rather than a regular kind of structure,” he noted.

Added Sproul: “We’re using AI to democratize [the knowledge worker] so that any worker can perform that task.”

Sproul said he hopes to create a similar fun and productive culture at Lacy Burger that Blue Square has. He also said that much of the technological advancements implemented into the new restaurant are built off the work done at his sourdough pizza shop.

“The goal is just to have our employees focus on great product and great service,” he said.

— NICK SCHOFIELD

Latest News

The Parks & Recreation Commission on Tuesday finalized its requests for CPC funding, including an updated design for Pyne Field.

At its meeting on Tuesday, the Economic Development Advisory Board debated the semantics of an economic development plan prepared by the Metropolitan Area Planning Council.

This week’s Police Log features two arrests, along with reports of an injured duck, a loud karaoke party and people night fishing.

The latest Arts Residency highlights Hopkinton High School senior London Williams, who has received multiple Scholastic Art Awards and plans to pursue animation in college.

Town meetings tonight include the Community Preservation Committee (7) and School Committee (7).

Photo of the Day

Twisted Carrot owner Sean Maher (left) assists a customer buying vegetables Sunday at the Town Common during the last day of the season for the Hopkinton Farmers Market.

PHOTO/JOSS ROBINSON