Pickleball and fine dining: Chef Chis Coombs to create restaurants at Natick Mall courts

NATICK — Chris Coombs is one of Boston's most renowned chefs. He owns four restaurants there, has received praise from outlets such as Forbes, and has been named Food & Wine's "The People's Best New Chef in America."

Despite all that success, Coombs has one goal that has lingered. A fitness nut, he has dreamed of combing his two passions — food and fitness — at one facility.

"I've always thought about ways to combine my two favorite things, but I could never create the right business plan to make it happen," Coombs recently told the Daily News.

That changed when local sports club operator D.J. Bosse approached Coombs with the opportunity he had been waiting for: Bosse was opening a new indoor pickleball facility at the Natick Mall, and he was looking to land a culinary professional to helm the dining side of facility.

Earlier: Natick Mall will soon net MetroWest's largest indoor pickleball facility

"I had known the Bosse family for a while, and D.J. approached me and asked if I would know any chefs that would be interested in this project," Coombs said. "I told him, 'Are you asking me if I know anyone, or are you asking me if I was interested? Because I am.'"

Coombs will bring four dining concepts to Bosse pickleball facility

Coombs, whose French restaurant, Deuxave, has been rated 4 stars from Forbes Travel Guide, now finds himself with a new opportunity, bringing his kitchen mastery to MetroWest to go with the trendy sport of pickleball.

"There really isn't going to be another place that is like this — there are other pickleball courts and athletic clubs that have dining options, but nothing like what we are planning on doing at Bosse," Coombs said.

Coombs is working to bring four dining concepts to Bosse, offering something for everyone as part of the pickleball club. Those include a rustic Italian restaurant, a traditional cafe, a sports bar and a dining center located directly courtside.

"It's not quite going to be four different restaurants, but it's this new concept where we are going to have four different kind of dining concepts, all operating out of this one central hub," Coombs said. "It's a new experience for me — I've never done an Italian restaurant before and I'm very excited. We are getting a new, custom-built pizza oven for the spot, and we are going to have pizza integrated across all four concepts."

The Natick facility will be built into the mall's former Neiman Marcus location. The 97,000-square-foot facility will feature 21 indoor pickleball courts, as well as dining space, private rooms and a fitness center, spread out across two floors.

Pickleball facility joins other concepts that combine entertainment and dining

“I am very enthusiastic to team up with Chris to make this venture incredibly special," Bosse stated. "As the popularity of pickleball continues to soar, the upcoming Bossestrives to create an inclusive and vibrant community, focused on friendly competition, camaraderie and recreational enjoyment."

The pickleball courts will join several other concepts that have emerged at the mall in recent years that combine entertainment options with high-quality dining. Puttshack, which opened Feb. 10 at the former American Girl Doll store, combines miniature golf with heavily-advertised dining options.

'Tech-infused mini-golf': Puttshack adds to entertainment options at the Natick Mall

Similar operations can be found at Level 99 and Dave & Busters, which sport professional culinary expertise in addition to their arcade games and escape rooms. Coombs said this is becoming a trend across retail and dining, which he terms "eatertainment."

"You are seeing this across the industry — a lot of people don't want to just go out for dinner anymore, they want to do something fun and have social interactions with other people," he said. "I think pickleball ties in perfectly with that — because you can play pickleball very seriously and work up a sweat, or you can play casually with your friends and then get drinks afterward. We are going to be able to serve both of those people, and I really think this is going to be a concept you are going to be seeing in other places going forward."

Bosse in Natick is expected to open later this year.

This article originally appeared on MetroWest Daily News: Restaurants at the Natick Mall pickleball courts tap Chris Coombs