Chef Marc Anthony Bynum & Mr. Frosty’s Bring Gourmet Burgers to Norwalk

Although it just opened in January, Mr. Frosty’s Deli and Grill, located at 10 First St., is already scheduled for an upgrade.

Celebrity chef Marc Anthony Bynum and Anthony Luciani, owner of Rolling Cones Ice Cream and Mr. Frosty’s, are in the process of transforming the deli and grill into The Beach Burger, a gourmet burgers and shakes restaurant slated to open April 16.

While The Beach Burger will be primarily grab and go with optional seating, Norwalkers can expect the quality of food to exceed that of most fast food restaurants. “Everything will be made to order, and there will be no frozen items,” Bynum guarantees.

The menu will include custom burgers, shakes with unique flavors such as peanut butter and jelly and strawberry cheesecake, and desserts like fried Twinkies and fried Oreos.

Bynam and Luciani are still working out the details, but in addition to featuring a redesigned menu, the restaurant will re-open with a new look. Renovations will place before the April 16 grand opening.

Whatever The Beach Burger looks like, with Bynam providing his consulting expertise, it is sure to impress. This won’t be his first foray into restaurant consulting. In addition to his Chopped success, Bynam uses his business acumen and championship culinary skills to both build restaurants from scratch and transform existing eating establishments.

The list of restaurants that have benefited from Bynam’s expertise includes, among others, Long Island’s Venue 56, Four Food Studio, Deli Boss, and most recently Cue Nine.

Bynam promises that, “I do not just come in, consult, and leave. I want to stay on for forever.” His plan for The Beach Burger is to help refine the business strategy, build the unique menu, and train new talent to work alongside existing chef Ruben Reyes, who has been with Mr. Frosty’s Deli and Grill since its opening in January. Work at The Beach Burger will keep Bynam in Norwalk for a few months, and then he intends to help as needed.

When asked what he likes about this particular consulting opportunity, Bynam said explained that Luciani “has big dreams. … His mindset is just like mine.”

Luciani may not have Bynam’s fame, but this 2001 Norwalk High School graduate has proven himself to be a hardworking entrepreneur who isn’t afraid to fight the odds. He revealed to Patch that when he bought his first truck only a year after graduating high school, “Everyone was against the ice cream truck idea. Even when we got twelve [trucks], no one took it seriously until we bought Mr. Frosty’s.”

Now everyone takes Luciani and his business seriously. Mr. Frosty’s earned Moffly Media’s Best of the Gold Coast “Best Ice Cream Shop in Connecticut” award last year and won Star 99.9’s listener poll.

Although Bynam and Luciani teamed up only three weeks ago, if all goes well this duo is considering turning the business into a chain. At the very least, Luciani plans to combine The Beach Burger’s catering capabilities with the ice cream catering services that Rolling Cones Ice Cream already offers. There isn’t much that could improve an ice cream social, except maybe gourmet burgers.

The grand opening of The Beach Burger will take place on April 16 starting at 11 a.m. Stop in for a tasting, meet Chef Marc Anthony Bynum, and listen to the music being provided by D.J. Stanford West of the Long Island and New York City club scenes.