Restaurant vacancies make way for new menus

by Eric Olson

SBJ Reporter

eolson@sbj.net

As a mix of national chains and locally owned restaurants cook up new plans for the Springfield market, a longtime establishment has served its last meal.

Marketplace Caf, which called 307 S. National home for nine years, was shut down March 3 after failing to pay state sales tax.

Doyles Inc., the caf's owner, owed the Missouri Department of Revenue approximately $16,000 in sales tax, according to managing owner Doyle Simpson. The debt was five months past due.

"(Business) was slow and the money ran out," Simpson said. "I just couldn't keep it up."

Simpson and Springfield restaurateurs Jay Parrino and Bob Ikemeier were partners.

Landlord Kirk Heyle said Marketplace Caf was current on its rent at the time of closing, but Doyles Inc. owes some of the remaining three months of its lease.

Simpson said falling behind on sales tax payments was not uncommon due to Marketplace Caf's fair-weather clientele. Business would drop 50 percent, sometimes more, during winter months, Simpson said. But in the past, spring would draw customers back.

"Business was just starting to turn around. But it wasn't fast enough," Simpson said.

Garbo's Pizzeria owner Pam Babcock seized the opportunity.

"The spot became available and as soon as I got wind of that, I came over and checked it out," Babcock said.

A week later, Babcock and Heyle agreed on a five-year lease for $2,600 per month. She has a three-year option.

Babcock plans to open Garbo's Pizzeria Midtown June 2. She already runs Garbo's Pizzeria and Izzy's Deli, both in Chesterfield Village.

Babcock said an interior facelift of the two-story midtown structure is in progress. She is creating a full-service bar on the first level, but said the upstairs may not be used until later, probably for private parties or overflow.

The menu will not change. "We'll be a mirror image" of Garbo's, she said.

Ocean Zen

Like Garbo's second locale, the new Ocean Zen is possible from a restaurant closure. But replacing old with new is much more than changing signage in this case.

The Tan family that operated Buckingham Smokehouse at 2058 S. Glenstone closed it April 1 with a concept new to Springfield in mind. Brothers John and Johnson Tan are renovating it to serve Asian, French and Italian fusion, called Pacific Rim cuisine.

"It's a little bit different from what Springfield has to offer," said John Tan, who will manage the restaurant.

The cuisine blends cooking techniques and flavors from the East and West. Ocean Zen chef Johnson Tan learned the fusion cooking style from Scottsdale (Ariz.) Culinary Institute's Le Cordon Bleu Culinary Arts program.

He most recently worked as chef and in menu development for Chateau Grille at Chateau on the Lake, but has cooked at restaurants owned by famous celebrity chefs Roy Yamaguchi, in Scottsdale, and Nobu Matsuhisa, in Las Vegas.

But the Tans have their work cut out before opening. The building that formerly housed Buckingham and Happy Family restaurants has been gutted, as $250,000 renovations are in progress, John Tan said. Construction, which includes a kitchen design that is open to the dining area and an additional 1,100 square feet for a bar, is scheduled to conclude in June.

When open this summer, Ocean Zen will feature items such as Seven Spice Panko Breaded Calamari Salad appetizers and Misoyaki Glazed Black Cod entres. Plates range from $6 to $12 for lunch and $8 to $22 for dinner, Tan said.

Tan believes Springfield is ready for this cooking, which he said is most similar to fusion styles at Metropolitan Grill and Bijan's.

"It's still meats and potatoes," Tan said. "It's a little bit of East meets West cuisine."

Smokey Bones

Another Springfield restaurant vacancy has turned into opportunity for Smokey Bones BBQ, a national chain from Orlando, Fla. Work is under way to transform the former southwestern-styled Rio Bravo at 2040 E. Independence into a rustic mountain lodge suitable for serving smoked meats.

Smokey Bones' parent company, Darden Restaurants Inc., acquired the 7,700-square-foot property in August. It is spending $3 million in renovations, and plans to open in mid-July, according to Joe Chabus, Darden spokesperson.

The restaurant will employ about 125, Chabus said. The menu features pulled pork, ribs, brisket, burgers, steaks, seafood, chicken and salads.

While Smokey Bones is new to Springfield, Darden Restaurants is not. Darden owns Red Lobster and Olive Garden, each with a Springfield presence. Bahama Breeze also is in Darden's portfolio of approximately 1,300 properties.

"Our Red Lobster and Olive Garden restaurants do very well in Springfield, and we're very thankful that the community has supported us for more than 30 years," Chabus said. "Our knowledge of the community encouraged us to build a great barbecue restaurant, too."

Smokey Bones first opened in Orlando in 1999, and has doubled in properties each year since, Chabus said. There are 65 restaurants and 27 more are planned to open this year, according to its Web site, www.darden.com. The publicly held company, traded as NYSE:DRI, reported profits of $4.7 billion in its last fiscal year, the Web site said.

Ruby Tuesday

Three new Ruby Tuesday restaurants will drop on the Springfield area by January next year.

Nixa-based Ruby Tuesday franchise partner John Bruton is opening one in his own backyard, and another in southeast Springfield. A third restaurant is under construction in Branson and is planned to open June 22 at Branson Mall on Highway 76, Bruton said.

Nixa's Ruby Tuesday, to be constructed at 715 McCroskey, has a January opening penciled in, while Bruton's third Springfield Ruby Tuesday is scheduled for Sept. 15 near James River Freeway and National Avenue.

Bruton is dropping about $7 million on the three new restaurants.

"We're growing in the market," Bruton said, which he added has posted good sales. He declined to release specific numbers.

Springfield's latest edition will be erected west of National, between James River Freeway and Republic Road, joining the cluster of restaurants already there: Pasta House, Mr. Yen's, Braum's, Scramblers and Zio's. A groundbreaking is set for May.

Bruton's franchising entity, RT Western Missouri Franchise LLC, is based in Nixa. He and his family moved there more than two years because of its good schools and growth.

"I chose Nixa to be a central point for me to do business from the northwest Arkansas corridor up," he said. "I like the demographic of Nixa."

Bruton's franchise area covers western Missouri, excluding Kansas City, and northwest Arkansas. He has been a Ruby Tuesday franchise partner for more than two years, after working as director of international franchising for Ruby Tuesday Inc.

Bruton has nine Ruby Tuesday franchise restaurants in Columbia, Jefferson City, Springfield, Branson, St. Robert, and Bentonville and Fayetteville, Ark.

Bruton has three other commitments on the table, and is committed to building four more in the next three years.