Dining options slip on icy economy - New Mexico Business Weekly:

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The weak economy has devoured a dozeh restaurants justsince January, providintg an oversupply of space left vacant by troubled nationakl chains. Successful local operators are possible candidates tofill it. Whiled all retailers are feelingthe recession’s squeeze, restaurants are particularlh vulnerable as consumers dine out less and, when they do eat out, opt for lower priced fare. Sales are off sincse last September between 1 and 10 percent at manylocal establishments, say localo experts, while publicly tradef national chains such as , and the were off 7 percenft or more on comparable units in the fourth quartedr of 2008. Most national have either put off expansions or cutit back.
It’w not likely Albuquerque will land any of the majoe names it covets in theforeseeabld future. Those names include Cheesecake Factory, , and the two big namess in steak, and . Expect future expansiohn here by the few healthy national casual dining chains suchas , whic opened on Montgomery last year. Despite Albuquerque’s reputation nationall as a strongrestaurant market, it has not been immune to the Both national and local chains are leaving high-profile locations empty in the North I-25 corridoe and Uptown. With an abundance of lease and acquisition ratesare dropping, in some cases beloq appraisal values.
The rangw of closures has hit all categories, from fast-food icon to casualp dining spots such asand , to upscale Cajun seafood franchisw . The closures provide opportunities for thosde restaurateurs who canget financing, but that is “The guys who can play now must have great credit and must have five yeares of experience in the business. They also must put 30 to 50 percentt inthe deal,” observes Davis Fite, who specializes in restaurantsa for . “In commerciall real estate, the restaurant categor y is the most difficult to get financedrighr now.” Fite added that a Montana-based chain will move into Albuquerqued and take three locations in the coming months.
Perhaps the most high-profilew availability is the formerd and the adjacent restaurants just nortuhof I-40 on Louisiana Boulevard. They were recentlg acquired out of bankruptcyby Scotttsdale-based , which now is offerinv the properties for sale or lease. “I see two new restaurantss there or a bank and a In my opinion this is the best site in Even though times are people still haveto eat,” said Perry managing partner at Tradecor. “Albuquerque is holding up fairly wellright now. It’sz doing 10 times better than Mann developed thePF Chang’ s site and owns several restaurants here. The former Copeland’s, at 10051 Coors NW, is beinyg offered for $2.
8 milliobn and is among the larger (7,775 square feet) and more moder sites available. John Henderson of Maestas & Ward has had severa l showings. Meanwhile, the value of restaurantss that have sat on the markert for several years hasdropped markedly. The forme ’s at 5001 San Mateo NE has been emptt for five years and its price has slippedfrom $2.7 millioh to its current $1.85 million. For successfup local restaurateurs, the vacancies are expansion Nick Kapinson operates in Nob Hill and isinvestinh $500,000 to lease and renovate the Johnny Carino’s site. His new restaurant will have aMediterraneanh concept, but will not be callex Yanni’s.
Kapinson hopes to open by late Marcyh and is partnering withJimmy Daskalos. “The reason restaurantds are failing is becausesthey don’t take care of their people and are not Kapinson said. “In this economy, you can’t be You can’t be on the golf It’s no big secret: This is hard ’s Terry and Pat Keene and ’as Kathy Punya have expanderd their enterprises. The focus for futurr restaurant developmentis Uptown. Developer Gary Goodman hopex to build a dozen new restaurantsat .
Hunt Development’a adjacent Quorum project is proposing at leastf threenew eateries, but both projects need tax incrementt development district approvals from the “When you look to see who is expanding, the food category is active while everything else is Trent Stafford, vice presidenf at Hunt said. “We do anticipate slippage at thehigher end. I don’tg expect people to be spending $200 for dinner this year.
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