New London ― Majan Pierra has always wanted to bring a big city vibe to a small city.

And she believes she and her husband, along with chef Frank Grace, are doing just that with the opening of their new restaurant at 90B Bank Street.

Named Favorites Bistro Bar, the restaurant will have some of Pierra’s favorite Caribbean-inspired dishes such as the crab roll and fritay with Grace’s culinary twist.

The restaurant with its gold velvet booths, “Instagram worthy” flower wall and outdoor deck with views of the Thames River is part of Pierra’s goal to provide “great service, food and ambiance.”

Favorites Bistro is among a number of new restaurants in the city that have opened or are opening in time for the summer. Pierra said the restaurant has had a soft opening for three weeks and plans on a grand opening within the next month.

“I wanted to give people something different with Caribbean-inspired food that’s not what everybody is used to,” Pierra said, who grew up in Haiti until she was 12.

Grace, who owned Frank’s Gourmet Grille in Mystic before it shut down during the COVID-19 pandemic, said on the menu is soup joumou, an important Haitian dish that represents the country’s independence. He said he’ll never be able to make it the way it’s made in Haiti, but as a chef he has the freedom to create a fusion of foods and make it as good as he can.

Grace said he encourages feedback by guests and hopes to eventually provide continental dinner specials.

Poppy Kaewwong and Jenny Suphasawad, the owners of Noodles and Rice Bistro, are opening another spot called Su & Sa, for sushi and salad, at 45 Bank St., the former Lazy Leopard Thai Cafe location.

Kaewwong Friday said they plan to have a soft opening May 8. He said they’ve had much success with their bistro at 165 Bank St. since it opened five years ago and wanted to offer something different along the city’s main, busy street.

Montauk Avenue restaurants

The owners of La Llorona, a full-service restaurant with progressive Mexican cuisine in Niantic, have branched out and opened a smaller, eat-and-go spot on 206 Montauk Ave. offering more than Mexican food. Called La Llorona Express, it opened less than two weeks ago.

Christopher Herbert, one of four partners in the family owned business, said the location offers a casual place for people on the go, whether they are on lunch break or stopping at a place to pick-up food on the way home.

“We want to bring a Mexican flare to New London and introduce food that is really good and representative of who our family is,” he said. “We want the community to embrace us.”

Herbert said his wife, Gabriela Herbert, and her relatives are from Michoacan, Mexico and the menu reflects staple pieces such as tacos, burritos and nachos. He added the restaurant has a different flavor profile here, with food from El Salvador, Columbia and other Latin American countries.

Herbert said La Llorona’s two locations have different concepts but have the same goal in mind: “make people happy.”

Also relatively new to the same street is Mi Gautemala Restaurant and Bakery at 452 Montauk Ave. and El Punto Exacto, a fusion of Dominican and Puerto Rican food, at 121 Montauk Ave.

j.vazquez@theday.com