from the Desert Sun in June:
Desert finds room for new restaurants
Restaurateurs cook up ways to weather summer and recession
Stefanie Frith
The Desert Sun
Opening a restaurant at the start of summer in the desert in a sagging economy might sound like a recipe for disaster.
But a handful of local entrepreneurs are doing just that.
Mindy
Reed and Nicolas Klontz, who have operated Zin American Bistro in
downtown Palm Springs for five years, last month opened Zini Cafe Med,
a Mediterranean-inspired restaurant at 140 S. Palm Canyon Drive in
downtown Palm Springs.
Sammy
G's Tuscan Grill is now open in Palm Springs, and the Old Creek House
is expected to take over the former Cedar Creek Inn site in the city in
a few weeks.
Rick's
Daily Grill plans to open this summer at the former Bakers Square in
Palm Springs, and on Thursday, L'Olivo will open at 333 N. Palm Canyon
Drive.
To those sitting on the sidelines, it begs the question, why now?
“It's
a good question, one each entrepreneur has to approach themselves,''
said Michael Estrada, president of the Palm Springs Restaurant
Association. He also is managing partner of The Falls and Matchbox
restaurants in Palm Springs.
“I
do think the economy will swing the other direction,'' he said. “While
I'd personally be hesitant to open going into the summer months, now
may be the best time to negotiate with a landlord than ever before.
These places may have been able to cut such good deals to open, that it
made good sense at this time.”
Business
leaders are hearing anecdotally that commercial leases are more
creative, and seem to be bending to fit the needs of tenants. No rent
deals for a period of time, leases that raise rent in increments and
leasing terms based on upward ticks in sales have been noted.
“My
guess is, these decisions are being made because these individual
business people recognize that if every there was a time to negotiate a
deal, now is the time,'' Estrada said, particularly if it secures
position in a lucrative spot. “In a year and a half, when the economy
turns around, it may be game-busters.”
Michael
Shimer, general manager of Tommy Bahama's Tropical Cafe and Emporium of
Palm Desert, said Cafe Zin has a great following, so it would make
sense to open close to their original location.
He
said some of the restaurants are corporations that likely planned
openings here long before the economy took a turn. For some, they may
have been following through on the deals they signed.
Long-established restaurants, Shimer said, likely will hold their own through this economy.
“We've
had no restaurants close” along El Paseo this year, said Shimer,
president of the El Paseo Street Association. “None have opened in the
past year,'' either, he said.
But some are in the planning stages, as part of The Garden expansion.
For the newcomers, and even a few mainstays, the going may not be easy as the economy works through its doldrums.
La Veranda European Bistro in Palm Desert opened and closed in a matter of months this year.
But
Sal Zavala, general manager at Sammy G's, said he isn't worried about
the restaurant surviving the summer. There's entertainment and specials
every night, friendly servers and management and a focus on locals, he
said.
“The key is
to have direct communication with the guests, to see what they want,”
Zavala said. “We want to appease people as much as possible.”
Magie
Le, owner of L'Olivo, said she will offer self-serve lunches in
addition to sit-down dinners. She and partner Ruggero Serrati used to
own the same restaurant space, but sold it twice over the years. When
the most recent owner couldn't make it, they bought it back.
“We
know how to operate in the summer,” Le said. “It will be down, but
people still need to go eat sometimes and (downtown) needs a place for
lunch.”
That's the mantra shared by Ed Bieler, who plans to open the Old Creek House in the next couple of weeks.
“People
like to find a nice restaurant and they still eat three times a day,”
Bieler said. “We are trying to accommodate those people.”
Bieler,
who has run eight restaurants, said he hopes the Old Creek House's
slogan, “food and prices like they should be,” will attract customers.
He
said that's the idea behind the self-serve lunches at L'Olivo.
Sandwiches and salads for $6 to $7 will be a “good time” for family and
friends, she said. Besides, she added, someone needs to come in and eat
the salami, bread and cheese Serrati creates.
“I can't eat all that by myself,” she said.
Stefanie Frith covers Palm Springs for The Desert Sun. She can be reached at (760) 778-4757 or stefanie.frith@thedesertsun.com. Staff writer Debra Gruszecki contributed to this story.