Post #302721 by Humuhumu on Sun, Apr 29, 2007 3:19 PM

I'm having trouble finding my enthusiasm for this reopening. I know it's really exciting for those who have an emotional attachment to Sam's -- it had a great history, and held a lot of importance for locals. By the time I got to see it, though, a lot of the charm had left. It was never one of my favorite restaurants, but it wasn't hard to see why locals who grew up with it loved it so much. And it did have some fantastic features.

I so want to support its return, and I suppose in many ways, I do. But, I'm trying to keep my expectations in check.

The pluses:

• It's coming back, and maybe that's better than no Sam's at all.
• They hired Bamboo Ben to do some work, which is a good sign.
• The food at Sam's was inedible, the drinks unpotable -- the new restaurant can only be an improvement.
• The attention being paid to things like issuing a reproduction of the original mug is pretty cool.

The minuses:

• The people who bought the property did so to build condos. As far as I'm aware, that plan has not changed. Because it might be a couple years before the owners will be able to start the development of the new condos (thanks to permits & the like), they have decided to at least let the property earn a little money by reopening the restaurant for a while. If the restaurant does well, they may decide to change their plans -- but consider for a moment how much money a condo development would make for the property owners. The restaurant would have to do really well.
• The little I've heard is that the budget for this reopen is modest (which makes sense, considering the very good chance that it will only be there for a few years). They have hired Ben to do, as he said, "some" stuff. But this is not an extensive remodel, and much of the decor was removed when Sam's closed. Do not go in expecting it to be the same old Sam's.

Take that all with a grain of salt -- some of my info comes from rumbles & rumors.