New Lexington restaurant to serve oysters, wood-fired pizza. Check out where
A new spot for oysters, wood-fired pizzas and more is being planned in the heart of Lexington.
Mother’s Oysters + Pies plans to open in September in Shoppes at Flight Deck plaza in Lexington. That’s at 109 Old Chapin Road, near the intersection of Old Chapin and W. Main Street.
The restaurant will be, according to a release, “designed to channel the lively spirit of a Mediterranean coastal town” and will “blend the energy of a neighborhood favorite with the culinary craftsmanship found in fine dining.”
Mother’s will have fresh, regional oysters served raw or charbroiled. It also will serve wood-fired, Neapolitan-style pizzas cooked in a traditional Marra Forni oven.
It will also serve pastas, Southern favorites such as shrimp & grits, seafood boils and more. The eatery will have 140 seats across two levels, including terrace seating and two full bars.
Jonathan Stambolitis is co-founder of the Purty Projects development company and the owner of Mother’s.
Mother’s is meant to complement Purty’s under-development Sandpiper Square project, which will bring 31 new homes to property just off Old Chapin Road and Snelgrove Road, behind the Shoppes at Flight Deck. A ceremonial groundbreaking for Sandpiper Square took place on April 24. The first houses there are slated to be completed by the end of September.
Jonathan’s father is Ted Stambolitis, who opened the Flight Deck restaurant in 1992, and created the surrounding shopping center when he moved the restaurant from the other side of Old Chapin Road. Jonathan’s sister Victoria runs the neighboring Hangar Provisions eatery.
The name “Mother’s,” Jonathan Stambolitis said, is a play on mother of pearl, which is the inside of an oyster shell.
“We really want to embrace heartfelt hospitality there, which is near and dear to our hearts,” he said. “I grew up in the hospitality industry, so putting hospitality at the forefront is really where Mother’s is coming from.”
There will be options for the oysters at Mother’s, Jonathan Stambolitis said.
“We’ve got this big wood-fired oven and grill, we’ll be doing beautiful chargrilled and wood-fired oysters, as well as oysters on the half-shell,” Stambolitis said. “We’ll really focus on local oysters. I’ve lived in Charleston for eight years now and we’ve developed some great relationships with local oyster farms. We plan on leaning as much as we can, as far into the season as possible, on local oysters from South Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia. And, when need be, we’ll reach a little further up the East Coast, as well.”
Stambolitis was involved with the former Arkos restaurant at the Shoppes at Flight Deck a number of years ago, and noted the popularity of one of its cocktails, the Avocadotini. He said a version of the drink will be resurrected at Mother’s.
“We are going to be bringing back the Avocadotini, but with a little twist to it,” Stambolitis said. “I’m so excited for people to kind of try this new twist. We are going to bring it back as a frozen cocktail.”
With both Sandpiper Square and Mother’s Oysters + Pies slated to debut in the fall, Stambolitis said he is hoping the two projects benefit one another.
“We are trying to create a vibrant downtown neighborhood that is as fun as it is beautiful,” Stambolitis said.
This story was originally published April 30, 2025 at 1:57 PM.
