The Observation Deck

Did I miss the announcement? Or is the place dark and the phone disconnected for another reason? Nothing on FB or their site that I saw.

Well, their last Facebook post was to show up to the Steelers' playoff game on January 3 in Steelers' gear to receive a discount, so I have no problem if they went out of business.

We have probably reached the saturation point for new bars. There is only so much business to go around. If one bar opens another must close.

That doesn't necessarily apply to all neighborhoods or cities. Destination restaurants can bring in people from all over the county and beyond. However, most of those bars and restaurants are in various taxpayer subsidized entitlement zones.

Some cities seek a layered approach to development. One of the key components of that is the medical industry; hospitals, labs, out patient centers, etc.

The City of Lakewood has choses a different path. A bar based economy and Recreation Center.

Bill, sometimes a place that is underfunded, with bad food and bad service, and management/ownership that has no affinity for that business, just cannot survive. Especially in a large building with probably high rent. An example would be Cleats/Crazy Rita's.

Michael Loje wrote:Bill, sometimes a place that is underfunded, with bad food and bad service, and management/ownership that has no affinity for that business, just cannot survive. Especially in a large building with probably high rent. An example would be Cleats/Crazy Rita's.

Good examples.

More than once my wife and I have left a new restaurant saying, "If it wasn't for the food and service it would have been ok."

Michael Loje wrote:Bill, sometimes a place that is underfunded, with bad food and bad service, and management/ownership that has no affinity for that business, just cannot survive. Especially in a large building with probably high rent. An example would be Cleats/Crazy Rita's.

Cleats and Crazy Rita had strong, established owners who have run successful businesses outside of Lakewood. They were just poorly run here. They had the mentality that in Lakewood all you have to do is open the doors and a bar/restaurant will be successful. The owners of your two examples proved that theory to be wrong.

I'm glad that their poor management paved the road for an amazing place that the city can be proud of, Deagan's.

Corey

Like Bill, I tend to think that Lakewood has stretched the limits of the "bar and restaurant" economy.
However, we might be wrong.....Lakewood has always been famous for its high number of bars.
When I was kid Lakewood was known for "bars and churches".

Is there any historical data on the number of bars and restaurants in Lakewood over the past 50 years?

I highly doubt for restaurants....however, aren't liquor licenses strictly regulated?
There should be data somewhere that reflects the number of bars and alcohol-serving restaurants over the decades.

I'd be curious to see if the number has actually grown, or if it just SEEMS like the number has grown.

Michael, I believe there are less bars now compared to when I moved to Lakewood in 1977. Some longtime bar locations have simply been converted to other uses(Anyone remember the Paradise Gardens in Birdtown, or the late, lamented B and C? And, of course, Maria's Roman Room, that could not survive the transition from restaurant/bar to restaurant. Also, the Newman Corners, which made the transition successfully from bar to empty lot).
Bill, I'm glad that you now recognize that some of these establishments can become destinations. Destination, at least to me, means that a place's appeal extends far beyond Lakewood's borders. We have a few of them in Lakewood, and there is room for more.
Corey, any history of Cleats/Crazy Rita's that you could share?
One last question: Can anyone remember all the bars that occupied the location where Barrio is now? My recollections go back to Slim's Locker Room.

Michael Loje wrote:Michael, I believe there are less bars now compared to when I moved to Lakewood in 1977. Some longtime bar locations have simply been converted to other uses(Anyone remember the Paradise Gardens in Birdtown, or the late, lamented B and C? And, of course, Maria's Roman Room, that could not survive the transition from restaurant/bar to restaurant. Also, the Newman Corners, which made the transition successfully from bar to empty lot).
Bill, I'm glad that you now recognize that some of these establishments can become destinations. Destination, at least to me, means that a place's appeal extends far beyond Lakewood's borders. We have a few of them in Lakewood, and there is room for more.
Corey, any history of Cleats/Crazy Rita's that you could share?
One last question: Can anyone remember all the bars that occupied the location where Barrio is now? My recollections go back to Slim's Locker Room.

What history would you like to know? In terms of location (places such as Barnacle Bill's)? Or history of the Cleats owner and/or the Crazy Rita owner?

Corey

Michael,

I am not sure less is correct, but could be.

I will say their are more patrons, as most bars have added patios if they can. Also there
are more of the "packed bars" a great example is "The Stop And Go" which sat on the
south side of Detroit just to the east of where Burger King is I believe. It's peak time was
always about 4 pm as letter carriers would stop before going back and signing out at the
post office. Maybe 20 people.

Across the street we now have 16-Bit, which a staff of 20, and god only knows how many
people pack into that place every night, and the patio. That place is busy.

So while Lakewood's population would seem to be steady at 50,001, and downtown
Cleveland is the fastest growing area in the county. The rest of the county is still
hemorrhaging residents. So it only makes sense that some will fail, as the market is
not really growing.

But the bottom line in this discussion, is we are really not talking about any place that any
of us are surprised closed. We are just surprised they closed so soon. This always indicate
the "I'll follow my dream, even if i don't have enough money..."16 Bit" is a freak, most
places are like Eddie Cerino's. Big rush when opens, with massive fall off, until enough
people like you and work you into their schedule. Eddie went through some slow days,
while he tinkered with menu, style, etc. Now he has a steady customer of customers that
take him past getting by into, steady base, and hopefully growth.

If you don't have the money to make through the down time, you fail. If you do not get
the first big swing at opening, you fail faster. If you have the big opening, and the food or
drinks are not what customers will rave about, you fail.

This group seems to go out to eat, what are your ten favorite go to places? Were any of
the places in this discussion on your list?

238 places to get prepared food in Lakewood 47.6 per square mile.

And we haven't even touched on what happens if the "cool" drops out, or say we lose our
largest employer like the Hospital?

I give them all credit and a pat on the back for trying it here in Lakewood, but it is a tough
market as proven by World of Beers, and 5 Guys, bottom line is not right, they are gone.

Stay tuned this thread unfortunately will be active this year.

.

Corey, it's interesting. For 20 years, people said that "nobody ever goes to Barnacle Bills". But yet, they apparently paid their rent, probably approaching a million bucks over 20 years, and whenever I went there I was not alone. If their business was as bad as many people said, they would have washed out in a year.
But Crazy Rita and Cleats were a different story. Their lifetimes, I think, were measured in months. What was that story?

Michael Loje wrote:Corey, it's interesting. For 20 years, people said that "nobody ever goes to Barnacle Bills". But yet, they apparently paid their rent, probably approaching a million bucks over 20 years, and whenever I went there I was not alone. If their business was as bad as many people said, they would have washed out in a year.
But Crazy Rita and Cleats were a different story. Their lifetimes, I think, were measured in months. What was that story?

Mike

I opened my offices in the days of Barnacle Bills, people went there, just very few
Lakewoodites. Around 5pm the lots would start to fill up for buckets of snow crab legs. I
would have loved the tonnage figures. I think their place in Mentor contributed to the closer.

I forget which one was next but they soon added crab legs to their menus, then closed.

To survive as a food/drink establishment in Lakewood, there needs to be something "special" about it. "Special" could be defined in many ways, but unless you have something unique, you won't survive long.

It could be food quality, selection, location, service, prices, ambiance, local ties, you name it. But there has to be something that makes you different in a crowded market.

Honestly, World of Beer didn't have any of it. Name one thing it was unique at that several others in Lakewood couldn't match? The Stache is running into the same problem. The only thing I can guess they have different from others is ambiance. Trying to create a "mid-high class, sports bar" is a bit different. But not sure how long that can last.

Our family makes an effort to try the new establishments in town, but so many of them we only go to once and then fall back on the regulars. It's not that we are "over-served" but that there is nothing particular unique enough for us to return.

JMHO

Not only does there have to be something "special" but your potential customer(s) have to know about it in the first place. I've never heard of Stache and I keep up on the bars in Lakewood.
Another example is a new pizza/sub shop on Madison between Morrison and Lakeland. The only reason I know it is there is because
I walk by it every morning. I'd like to give it a shot but there are no menus in the door for passersby like me. I couldn't find it on the Facebook link.
They just need to do marketing 101 to even bust into the scene.
Stan Austin

Every once in a while, to keep up with the scene, I check the restaurant reviews section of the Observer. Only two restaurants listed, and they are both defunct.