February 12, 2008
And one less restaurant for Roanoke...
The Seafood Company, which was located next to Heavenly Ham in Roanoke for the past year and a half, has closed.
Owner Frank Guilfoyle, who also owns Heavenly Ham, said the restaurant's business was growing, but not quickly enough given the amount of time and money that he was having to put in.
Heavenly Ham has been around for more than nine years, and Guilfoyle said "that's really the most paramount thing."
I think what he was trying to say is that he couldn't afford to let The Seafood Company drag Heavenly Ham down.
Steve Van Metre, the manager and head chef at The Seafood Company, declined to comment on the closure other than to say that he just needed "to chill out right now."
Steve is a talented guy who formerly ran Angler Cafe in downtown Roanoke, so I know the food was not the problem at The Seafood Company, and Guilfoyle confirmed that.
Guilfoyle said the decision was not made "without a lot of thought and anguish." He said he offered to let Van Metre take over ownership of the restaurant if he wanted, but that did not seem to be in the cards, financially.
Now, The Seafood Company is available as a turnkey seafood market and restaurant, if anyone out there has the money and is interested. If not, Guilfoyle said, perhaps some restaurateur will open up a different kind of eatery there.
"It's a wonderful space," he said.
What do you guys think? Did you ever have a chance to try it out?
Comments
[February 12, 2008 2:22 PM]
RichThat Healthy Treats Bakery and Cafe downtown...walked by it this morning and noticed a for sale sign in the window.
[February 12, 2008 2:28 PM]
Lindsey : →http://blogs.roanoke.com/fridgemagnet/Surprise, surprise...
[February 12, 2008 4:06 PM]
Jordan : →http://www.roanoke.comUnfortunately, healthy just doesn't sell in Roanoke. Even places like the Co-op, Ukrops, and Fresh Market all sell "less-than-healthy" options.
[February 12, 2008 5:32 PM]
Nona : →http://blogs.roanoke.com/thehappywag/My husband and I ate at the Seafood Company a couple of times and really enjoyed it. Sad to see it go.
[February 12, 2008 8:44 PM]
cynthiaWe ate at the Seafood Company several times--the food was wonderful (the shrimp tacos were my favorite), and it was a lovely space. But it was never terribly busy whenever we were there, so it isn't a huge surprise. But it still sucks . . .
[February 12, 2008 10:32 PM]
Jordan : →http://www.roanoke.comNever ate at the Seafood Company. I didn't realize that the owner was the same as Heavenly Ham, though. HH has a delicious turkey sandwich -- it is to die for.
[February 13, 2008 8:31 AM]
RichTell me about it. Maybe it was their menu...A few people I work with walked in, and walked out...me included.
Just wasn't much there. What I did try was decent, but nothing to rave about, or nothing you couldn't get in an entenmann's box low fat.
[February 13, 2008 9:57 AM]
__NathanHad dinner there last week for the first time (previously had only had lunch there). All the food was fantastic, as expected, but more importantly saw a number of folks doing carry-out and a steady line of folks waiting for tables the entire time we dined. Did they all know something we didn't, or was it just too little too late? The size of the place just wasn't conducive to the business. If you have a steady trickle of customers 24/7 like the Texas Tavern, you can afford to only have seating for 10 people. However, if the bulk of your profits come from a 2-3 hour dinner rush, its hard to make it with seating for only 30-40 people. Very sad, but glad we finally made it out there.
[February 13, 2008 10:06 AM]
Lindsey : →http://blogs.roanoke.com/fridgemagnet/Jenny Boone has written about the closure of Healthy Treats on her blog, The Storefront. Check it out at blogs.roanoke.com/storefront/ for the details.
[February 14, 2008 9:01 PM]
AmySigh. Not too many places in town working this hard to make great, interesting food, with local ingredients to boot... not to mention providing seafood you could feel good about (e.g., shrimp from NC, not Asia). Double sigh. Hate to see it go.
[February 17, 2008 3:54 AM]
MikeI have never eaten at either. I may never eat at Heavenly Ham. When they were located next to Hollywood video I pulled up in front of their store and a girl RAN!! to the door and locked it.
I noticed it was their closing time. But you know what? I wasn't even going there, I was going next door to rent a movie. It may seem silly but for that reason I have never eaten there.
[August 2, 2008 1:11 PM]
Willie Rizzle : →http://www.myspace.com/localrootscafeI think Healthy Treats would have done better if it were called "Unhealthy Treats"