I certainly wasn’t sure what to think when Carl’s Jr. opened for business earlier this year along Main Street. The spot chosen, at first glance, should be a good one. Lots of visibility to Main Street and Broadway and good pedestrian traffic.
And yet the spot has seen plenty of restaurants come and go over the years. Some were good, some not. For whatever reason, one eatery in that spot, The Zoo (I think that was the name) sticks out in my head as one of the better restaurants. But that dates back to when I worked downtown in the early 1980s as an office intern.
Anyway, Carl’s Jr. is now closed. Which is odd, because with the NBA coming to town, it might have become a popular cheap and quick meal on the go before home games. I suspect the space won’t be empty for long. I’m seeing evidence of an onslaught of new restaurants and clubs being planned around the arrival of the Thunder at Ford Center.
Now, will any of them be any good? How many will stay open for more than a year or so?
October 6th, 2008 at 1:04 pm
The location is good, but it WAS better. I also worked downtown in the mid-80’s. Back then, there was a real Century Center Mall to the South, filled with small boutique shops, a TWA ticket office, and plenty of law firms, dentists, and tag agents. They actually crossed Main St. in the Skywalk, and took the escalator to the Zoo Restaurant.
Today, the mall is silent, and will be turned into a grand ballroom, so the skywalk will continue to be seldom-used, except by hotel guests from the Sheraton.
Don’t get me wrong. It is still a good location. But I believe a restaurant owner would need to have more traffic for lunch in order to make it there. Perhaps breakfast and/or dinner?
Which brings up a possible sore subject. How many restaurants offer DELIVERY to downtown residents and hotel guests? What type of food? How late will they deliver?
October 6th, 2008 at 2:33 pm
Hey Steve, could you please explain how several restaurants opening are linked to the arrival of the Thunder?
I can see Coyote Ugly, but not many others, enough for it to be a significant point to make about Downtown..
October 6th, 2008 at 3:47 pm
Nick, part of what I’m writing about is what’s still in the works. I’m tracking what is looking like the biggest wave of openings in Bricktown in quite some time. As to whether they will all pan out, that’s another story.
October 13th, 2008 at 6:27 am
Very exciting.