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  1. #1
    Patrick Guest

    Default Hal Smith restaurant update

    Another plateful: Hal Smith’s restaurant presence grows in Norman and Oklahoma City

    Hal Smith and his restaurant group are about to expand their empire.

    The restaurateur, who lives in Norman, already owns the successful Charleston’s, Boomerang and Redrock Canyon Grill brands, as well as the Krispy Kreme stores in Norman and Tulsa.

    He plans to open Louie’s on the Lake in November and is eyeing the first week of December for the Norman openings of Louie’s at Brookhaven and The Islands.

    The Louie’s brand is an outgrowth of Louie’s Deli & Bar on Campus Corner in Norman, in which University of Oklahoma head football coach Bob Stoops also has a stake.

    The two new restaurants, which will be located off Britton Road and Lake Hefner and Brookhaven Village at 3750 W. Robinson, will be casual but will feature a more upscale menu than their namesake, Smith said.

    “We’re still formulating a bit of the menu on both of the places right now but it's going to be a bit more upscale from Campus Corner, more entrees for dinner,” he said. Pizzas, steaks, sandwiches, salads and a generous bar menu are among planned offerings.

    Smith defended his decision to locate in Brookhaven Village, despite the bad luck of two previous restaurants.

    His leased site at Brookhaven Village, recently purchased by Allen Gann, is the former site of Old Germany and, most recently, the former Danny’s Steakhouse, which closed in late June. Both restaurants were rumored to have struggled financially.

    While business expansions are seldom without risk, Smith believed his Louie’s at Brookhaven would succeed where others had failed.

    The previous establishments were “a little pricey for Norman. We’re going to have a casual atmosphere but upscale it slightly,” he said.
    Overall, Smith said he is spending $250,000 on the Brookhaven property, something he wouldn’t do if he didn’t feel confident it would work.

    Menu items will range from $8 to $12 and the addition of a climate-controlled patio with misters and heaters should be an enticing draw for customers, as well.

    “Oklahoma is a funny state when it comes to dining or having a cocktail outdoors. There are very few days when the weather doesn’t affect something, but if you can climatize [a patio] with misters and heaters, you can do something special,” Smith said.

    The Islands, which is a new brand, will be located at 700 Ed Noble Parkway, the former address of Smith’s Pearl’s franchise and Bellini’s prior to that.
    It’s visible to both north and southbound Interstate 35 traffic and situated amid a high-traffic shopping center that includes Home Depot, Toys “R” Us, Barnes & Noble and Bed Bath & Beyond.
    Contrary to some rumors, Smith said he didn’t close his Pearl’s franchise because its sales were low.
    While he admitted he believed Norman customers were “shifting away from the spicy, Cajun type of food,” he said it really came down to the “hefty” franchise fees he had to pay for use of the Pearl’s name.
    “I know if I hadn’t had to pay the royalty fees, we would have made pretty good money in that restaurant,” he said. “If we just come close to the same sales numbers as before, it will be a successful restaurant.”

    As its name implies, The Islands will be a seafood-themed restaurant. Thatched roof décor will hang over the dining areas but the overall ambiance won’t be as “eclectic,” Smith said, as Lake Hefner’s Bahama Breeze.

    Appetizers will range from about $5 to $7 and entrees from about $8 to $14, with fresh seafood being offered daily. While Norman also has a Red Lobster and a Joe’s Crab Shack within two miles of where The Islands will be, as well as a few sushi establishments, Smith believed his concept would be unique for Norman and that the community would be able to support it.

    He said he was only having to spend about $100,000 to renovate the property and, pending approval by the city of Norman, contractors would begin transforming its exterior in the next few weeks.

    “This will not be that great of an expense. We already have a kitchen in place; we’re utilizing the same equipment. We’re just talking about painting and décor items, really,” he said.

    “It’s going to be moderately priced. You’ll get a lot of food on your plate. We’ve got a couple of guys working on the menu, testing the food right now, and I’m very pleased with where we are right now.”

  2. #2

    Default Re: Hal Smith restaurant update

    I was wondering about the Pearl's in Norman, sounds like The Islands will be a good replacement. Hopefully they'll still have oysters, and a good bar with a wide selection of tropical cocktails!

  3. #3
    Patrick Guest

    Default Re: Hal Smith restaurant update

    I wouldn't be surprised if HalSmith did the very same thing with Pearl's Lakeside. Right now he's also having to pay naming rights for that property.

  4. #4
    jenncole Guest

    Default Re: Hal Smith restaurant update

    Haven't heard alot about Hal Smith, lately, whats up???

  5. #5

    Default Re: Hal Smith restaurant update

    I was reading about the old Pearl's location on I-240 and it reminded me of this. Pearl's lakeside is no more. It's just Lakeside now and is fully a Hal Smith location. As is the old Bahama Breeze location which will be a mexican restaurant very soon. All of the eateries at Lake Hefner are now Hal Smith and he is doing some really nice things with them. I'm looking forward to the summer out there.

  6. #6

    Default Re: Hal Smith restaurant update

    Quote Originally Posted by kmf563 View Post
    Pearl's lakeside is no more. It's just Lakeside now and is fully a Hal Smith location.
    I was wondering why my debit card charge looked different on my bank statement from my last dining. It came thru as Lakeside Fish Grill instead of Pearls Lakeside.

  7. #7

    Default Re: Hal Smith restaurant update

    kmf, do you have a time table on the old Bahama Breeze location? I went by there just the other day and was wondering when something was going to happen there.

  8. #8

    Default Re: Hal Smith restaurant update

    I was living out of town when the East Wharf was developed. I saw the original consultant's plan before I left, and was somewhat surprised to see how different the finished project looked. This is probably old news, but how did that office building get in the plan?

  9. #9

    Default Re: Hal Smith restaurant update

    Quote Originally Posted by bornhere View Post
    I was living out of town when the East Wharf was developed. I saw the original consultant's plan before I left, and was somewhat surprised to see how different the finished project looked. This is probably old news, but how did that office building get in the plan?
    Fred Hall.

  10. #10

    Default Re: Hal Smith restaurant update

    I don't have a definite date CC. I was just discussing the entertainment lineup for the summer and we talked about dates for the new restaurant. I don't even know for sure what it will be called. I do know they are projecting this summer - but that's not a definite. Also, there are plans of a boardwalk going from patio to patio so you can mingle and walk around to all restaurants and enjoy the live music.
    If anybody on here works at the Lakeside location or has been since they changed the name - I'm REALLY concerned about my perfect margarita!! LOL. Are they the same? I don't like change. I love to sit out on that patio and listen to music and suck those puppies down. They are the best in town IMO.

  11. #11

    Default Re: Hal Smith restaurant update

    Thanks for the info. Sounds like it will be really nice when it's done.

  12. #12

    Default Re: Hal Smith restaurant update

    Keep driving by on the commute home...Any update on the replacement for Bahama?

  13. #13

    Default Re: Hal Smith restaurant update

    I worked for Hal at his first restaurant named: ACROSS THE STREET RESTAURANT, it was located on s.w. 59th and agnew. This was back in 1974

  14. #14

    Default Re: Hal Smith restaurant update

    I heard a rumor today that there may be a Redrock Canyon going in downtown. The person who told me this thought it might be going in to the Myriad Gardens or somewhere near Devon.

  15. Default Re: Hal Smith restaurant update

    Quote Originally Posted by betts View Post
    I heard a rumor today that there may be a Redrock Canyon going in downtown. The person who told me this thought it might be going in to the Myriad Gardens or somewhere near Devon.
    There was supposed to be a restaurant in the Myriad Gardens. Deep Fork Group was the only bidder and the City Council rejected the bid. DFG proposed a burger joint and the city wanted an upscale type of place. Apparently no entrepreneur wanted to try an upscale place. It doesn't look like it will happen.

  16. #16

    Default Re: Hal Smith restaurant update

    I hope it's the Myriad Gardens!

    But of course, Devon is going to have lots of restaurant space to fill in the Garden Wing as well.

  17. #17

    Default Re: Hal Smith restaurant update

    DFG also reportedly wanted to make too many modifications (presume it was the kitchen layout/equipment or something along those lines). That may be an issue with whomever goes in there, if the tenant is going to have to adapt to the pre-existing space. Maybe it should have been "built to suit"?

  18. Default Re: Hal Smith restaurant update

    I was told that DFG had won the contract... then the city went in and said "our bad, john Williams actually won the bid". So he also has this on his plate now.

  19. #19

    Default Re: Hal Smith restaurant update

    Ed, are you saying that Devon / John Williams will be the operator for the Myriad Gardens restaurant?

  20. Default Re: Hal Smith restaurant update

    Ed, I think you're misinformed on that. There is no deal, at least at this point, for any such arrangement and I know Williams has enough on his plate with what he's doing now.

  21. Default Re: Hal Smith restaurant update

    eh, it wouldn't be the first time, steve. i wonder why someone would tell me that. i think it was someone at the colcord, but i just can't remember. that is what happens when you are braincell disabled.

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