Tower Fish House / Former Byram's Lobster House Closed?

Update:

According to my sources, the newly revamped Byram's Lobster House has closed.

The 60-plus-year-old restaurant was purchased and reopened in 2011 by a husband and wife team of first-time restaurant owners. Following a slew of negative reviews and tepid sales, the pair closed the restaurant early this year to revamp and rebrand.

The newly christened Tower Fish House reopened in early February and now, apparently, it is closed. The website and Facebook pages are still live, but the phone rings unanswered and my sources in-the-know are telling me the place is done for good.

What did you think of the rebranding, Richmond?

The owners sought to lower the prices and offer Richmonders affordable, quality seafood, but with an average seafood entrée price of $17 at dinner, was it affordable enough?

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Original Post Feb. 8, 2012:

Byram's Lobster House has reopened as Tower Fish House, with a whole new concept, and price point.

The pricey seafood and Italian fare of the old spot’s namesake is gone, replaced with what the owners of the revamped Tower Fish House are calling "the finest of American seafood at reasonable prices."

Reasonable prices, indeed. This new fish spot on Broad has a lunch menu full of $6 - $10 sandwiches (crab cake, lobster roll, Po Boy), plus a $7 fish n chips and shrimp basket, an all-the-time $3 kid’s menu, and dinner entrees averaging closer to $15 than its former $20.

Apparently the space also boasts a revamped interior (which Richmond.com plans to check out later in the week). See the full PDF menu here.

Tower Fish House reopened on Wednesday, Feb. 8 and is open Monday – Saturday, 11:30 a.m. – 10 p.m. Closed on Sundays.

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Original Post Jan. 17, 2012:

If there’s one new trend in Richmond restaurants that I’m in love with, it’s the trend of a restaurant knowing when its concept isn’t working, and reacting quickly.

I’m thinking of Ironfish, of course. It opened as The White Anchovie to tepid reviews and that blaring signal that never lies – an empty dining room. It only took the owners a few months to take the hint, and voilà – new name, new chef, tweaked concept – and suddenly, strong reviews and diners in chairs.

And now Byram's Lobster House is following suit.

The 60-plus-year-old Fan spot reopened under new ownership last year, to tepid (OK, fine, negative) reviews and a frequently empty dining room.

For months, the owners tried to fill the chairs with weekly dinner specials, but now the they’re taking dramatic measures – closing the restaurant from now through the end of the month to redo the menu, work out the kinks, slash the prices, and reopen, ideally on February 1.

Tower Fish House is the likely new name, and the concept is to be an affordable spot for seafood, with lunch priced under $10 and dinner under $20.

Richmond.com will keep you posted on the details, but we want to know, what do you want to see on the menu?