It was once difficult to imagine the Mystic River as a backdrop for waterfront dining, but the tides are changing. Assembly Row’s park on the bank of the Mystic provides a picturesque environment, and River Bar is poised to take advantage of those views when it opens in mid-October.

With a patio twice as large as its interior, River Bar’s alfresco focus is obvious. That outdoor space will be heated and partially covered—allowing for three-season use—and features a bar, fire pits, lounge seating and room for 123 patrons to enjoy the titular river’s vistas. And with the restaurant’s glass exterior, even the diners inside will be able to soak in the setting.

But owner Ken Kelly has more than just pretty panoramas planned at his fifth Somerville restaurant, which joins Foundry on Elm, the Independent, Brass Union and Saloon. He’s brought in Patrick Gilmartin (Staff Meal Food Truck) to helm the kitchen with a menu centered on bar snacks and meaty small plates. The “elevated street food” encompasses shrimp chips with black garlic aioli, chicken and brie terrine and the chorizo Scotch quail eggs that Gilmartin used to make on his food truck. More traditional main dishes will include a roasted vadouvan half chicken with baby eggplant and yogurt. And seven of the 36 indoor seats will be at a culinary bar, offering closer interaction with the kitchen, which will serve lunch, dinner, weekend brunch and a late-night menu.

“We’re really going for a fun and modern vibe,” Gilmartin says. “The whole concept is creating a kind of bar we’d want to hang out in.”

That concept extends to the spirits, with River Bar promising to be cocktail-centric and pull in bartenders from Kelly’s other ventures to work under Jess Willis. The menu incorporates modern twists on classic drinks and seasonal selections, such as an absinthe frappe. And the tap list will be filled with local craft beers and limited releases. For Gilmartin, who lives a five-minute walk from the restaurant, it was essential to showcase those local purveyors.

“It’s an interesting location, and it’s changing for the better,” Gilmartin says of Assembly Row, which is booming with a new T stop, apartments, premium outlets, a bevy of restaurants and a movie theater. “But it was very important for us to remind people a little of local Somerville. And to drive some local traffic to the area.”

River Bar 661 Assembly Row, Somerville (617-616-5561) river-bar.com