It's back to square one for owners of the property that housed the former Pasta House Company restaurant on Euclid across from SubZero.
Attorney and restaurateur Ralph Kalish has decided, one day in advance of a liquor license hearing scheduled before the Excise Commissioner, not to follow through on opening what would have been the third Crushed Red restaurant (the others are in Clayton and Kirkwood).
There have been several bar/restaurant operators who failed in their attempts to garner sufficient support from neighbors that live within the 300 foot circle necessary to approve a liquor license application. Kalish had collected enough signatures to make Crushed Red a viable addition. In my opinion his operation was probably our best option to date for the neighborhood. I have been to the Crushed Red in Clayton several times and enjoyed the salads and pizza too. It's a family-friendly place that serves only beer and wine and, because it closes early, would not have attracted a bar crowd.
Rumor has it that the whole permitting process was just taking too long and Kalish decided not to proceed. As I said at the beginning of this post, it's back to square one.
It is unfortunate that the announcement was worded as it was, giving the impression that neighbors were not in favor of it.
On the contrary, residents were enthusiastic in support for Crushed Red! It is the perfect type of restaurant for this neighborhood! The gathering of signatures was just a logistics issue; i.e., finding people at home.
Especially troubling is that the Post, Sauce, and Feast magazines picked up on this story, and made it appear that it was a victim of resident opposition. This kind of publicity does not help us to attract a
comparable restaurant.
Enough pizza already. Anyone know of a fabulous bakery/cafe that could join the hood?
Thank you Nicki for letting us know what is going on in the CWE. I have learned a lot from your Blog.
I think the neighborhood is over saturated with restaurant and bars. Businesses tend to forget that people live here too. All that nightlife, while great, can be disruptive. We desperately need other alternatives. Katie mentions some great ones. Something that could not only attract people from all over the area but can also serve residents in their everyday experience.
Katie… those are all good ideas. I have forwarded this column and comments to the building owner, Debbie Pyzyk of Kohner Properties. Building owners set rent rates which impact on who can afford to rent the space. Of course the building owners have constraints too… usually bankers to pay, buildings to maintain, taxes/insurance etc.
I too was greatly disappointed to read Crushed Red will not be moving into the former Pasta House.
I was so looking forward to it because I do like to frequent their location in Clayton.
Katie, I like your ideas, especially the retail bakery/patisserie one.
Thanks Nicki for keeping us informed.
This doesn’t sound like a city issue — the hearing was set for tomorrow. He couldn’t have waited one day? But it’s too bad, it was a nice option for that space and would’ve also been good for neighbors. (Though I’m sure this news is a relief for existing salad restaurant Green Bean, not even a block south.)
I’d love to see some more thoughtfulness put into what businesses go into available spots in the neighborhood — they don’t all have to be bars or restaurants. Why not put a locally owed day spa (something like The Face & The Body) in that space? A record store? A retail bakery/patisserie? A general store concept a la Winslow’s Home?
I too am very disappointed to lose Crushed Red!! I thought you might want to know what the process is.
To get a liquor license the business has to have signatures of 50% of residents/tenants and 50% of the property owners within a 350 ft radius. This process tries to balance the interests of residents and businesses. It took Crushed Red several months to persuade enough residents within the circle to sign the petition. Then the signatures are certified by excise, and the hearing noticed etc. This long process ate up time… Ultimately just pushing the opening date too far out, considering the amount of construction that needs to be done at this location.
If/when there is another proposal for this location, that we like… I hope we can all work FOR it swiftly and enthusiastically. Opponents always seem to be louder and more energized .
I am so glad to see that there is so much interest in this topic.
This is ridiculous! Why does the city make it so difficult for successful business to enter?!!!! This would have been a great addition to the neighborhood and what a disappointment. Now this building will continue to sit vacant and will continue to run down. This has got to stop!!!
A shame- I don’t understand this mentality. Much like the outrage over Lester’s. We are finally reversing the trend of businesses leaving the city for the county and now we are putting up road blocks. Perhaps we wouldn’t need a city income tax or special tax districts if we created more business friendly policies.
I hope something can succeed there. It’s been vacant or failing for quite a while it seems.
Agreed. The early close time would have been perfect!
That is too bad. I think it would have been an asset to the neighborhood.