After spending a good amount of time looking for a home for Wassie Mulugeta‘s Ethiopian Restaurant, I have learned a lot about the thrill of the hunt and the agony of defeat. While scoping out certain restaurant spaces on Elmwood, I can readily say that paying upwards of $6000 a month to lease particular unoccupied restaurants is ludicrous. I am also re-energized when it comes to looking off the beaten path, and am finding inspiration when it comes to staking claims in up and coming neighborhoods like Connecticut Street (see CSSS) and Amherst Street (see BRKB).
On one hand a restaurateur could purchase a building, apply for a change of use (most likely), acquire hardware and equipment, open for business, and would hopefully be happy knowing that he or she has made a difference in the neighborhood of choice. I firmly believe that customers are not only ready to explore the different neighborhoods, they are eager to explore new places. For years we’ve watched restaurants come and go out of the same locations… over and over and over. On the other hand, we have become accustomed to going to the same neighborhoods over and over and for many years that formula appeared to work. Unfortunately, a restaurant space can get dull and boring, especially when it flips too often because of greedy landlords. Paper goes up, paper comes down, paper goes up, paper comes down… there’s only one way to combat the greedy landlords, and that’s to drive down the demand for their buildings.
When I go to Toronto or NYC, I love exploring the different neighborhoods, not only to find new food types, but also to find new buildings in unfamiliar neighborhoods. These days, thanks to the Internet, business owners have the ability to market themselves in ways that no-one ever dreamed possible. People are not only thirsty for the onslaught of microbeers that we see pouring into Buffalo, they are also bored of going to the same establishments with different names. Not to say that a clever restaurant owner can’t change the look of a place… it’s just that he or she rarely does it successfully. Remember when Subway on Elmwood transformed into Europa? Now that was brilliant.
This past weekend, when my friend and I arrived to Black Rock Kitchen and Bar (photos) and realized that we could not get a table, I was not upset at all. We waited to find a couple of seats at the corner of the bar and sat, staring in awe, at the place that had once been a hardware store. When a couple of friends joined us, we stood up and gave them our seats while we walked outside to sit on a couple of modernist chairs that had been placed in front of the building. As we sat there we talked to just about everyone who walked inside… the place just got fuller and fuller. Soon there were people hanging around outside on the sidewalk with us. I thought to myself that the Goldman’s could have opened on Elmwood in a $6000 space if they wanted to play it safe. Thankfully they chose to go a different route. The building on Amherst Street had been purchased by an enterprising young woman by the name of Sue ‘Frenchy’ Cholewa. The Goldman’s are leasing the space from her, although they have invested in the building. In the end, a wise investment with an option to buy sure beats paying $72,000 a year on Elmwood! Just look at Rohall’s Corner – Greg Rohall bought a mothballed bar for cheap (compared to other parts of the city), fixed it up, opened the doors and has a steady business. He made an investment into the area and that alone helps to attract others. For those still looking on Elmwood, there are still opportunities, even if it means buying a house and converting it, just like Organic 3 did. Blue Monk struck gold when it opened in the old Merlin’s, but these advancements only lend more credence to the building owners on the street that just want to stick it to you.
The important thing to consider is that there are different directions to take and we are not limited to opening businesses solely on Elmwood, Allentown and Hertel. “If you buy your own building you can choose your destiny,” Frenchy told me. “That’s how America started – people purchased buildings in neighborhoods that they could afford, and then they lived upstairs. They invested and lived in the neighborhood. Just look at the immigrants who are opening businesses on the West Side. People want to rally behind the building and business owners that are making a go of it. It’s not Pollyanna, it’s hard work, but there are so many opportunities to look at. People will go anywhere for food… just look at the Viking Lobster Company. He serves great food and people search him out. If you have the right idea in any neighborhood, people will support you. Even a turnkey operation in an undiscovered neighborhood is different. I have found that a lot of times a building isn’t even for sale. I’ll walk up to a building owner and ask if it’s for sale. You’d be surprised to find how many times an owner is more than happy to sell to you.”
I’m having a lot fun these days re-imagining what neighborhoods could look like. To look at a building in a sleepy neighborhood and think what it must have been like back in the day… what’s on the inside? What’s the history? Who else is looking at it? I can’t wait to see what’s next. Who’s the next Frenchy? Where’s the next street? I’m also learning about the history of our city thanks to our adventurous urban pioneers. To see a neighborhood revitalizing right before your eyes is powerful. In the last five years I’ve seen it a number of times. Each time it’s different, because each neighborhood has its own identity, and those identities are not fading away with parking lots and cookie cutter Rite Aids (for the most part)… the character of these neighborhoods are being thoughtfully restored one building… one business at a time.