The idling line of cars snaking around Dairy Queen never shortened. Two or three new cars filled the void whenever the line moved forward.
The newest ice cream and fast-food spot opened Tuesday in South Abington Twp. to curious customers whose enthusiasm marks shifting tastes.
The fork in consumer preference is slowly reshaping a major commercial artery in Lackawanna County.
For people who work in commercial real estate, the dramatic changes are nothing new. But to the casual observer, Northern Boulevard in South Abington Twp. looks like a revolving door.
Here are four recent examples:
- Earlier this month, J.J. Bridjes closed for good. The building is up for sale for $1.5 million, according to a listing on the commercial real estate marketplace Loopnet.com.
- On Tuesday, Blu Wasabi remains open, but the restaurant in the Notch along Northern Boulevard is for sale. An online listing says owner Vinny Lam wants $1.2 million for it.
- A sign outside the shuttered La Tonalteca says the property is for sale. Greg Jones of Metro Commercial Real Estate said the owner, Authentic Mexican Restaurant Group, wants to gauge the appetite of potential buyers.
La Tonalteca, part of a chain of Mexican restaurants with other eateries in Delaware and New York, has another one in Scranton, near the Dickson City border, a few miles away. It didn’t make sense to have two so close to each other, Jones said. He didn’t rule out owner Authentic Mexican tweaking the brand and reopening. - Bazil Ristorante Italiano left the Nichols Village Hotel & Spa plaza in March after 10 years as the once-hopping event destination declined into disrepair. A Loopnet property listing seeking new tenants suggests the owners plan to raze existing structures and put up six new buildings with more parking. Attempts to reach listing agents with CBRE, the company marketing the sites at 1101 Northern Blvd., were unsuccessful.
Still changing
The transformation isn’t ending and might never end, said John Cognetti, president of Hinerfeld Commercial Real Estate, one of the region’s largest commercial real estate brokerages. The preference among travelers on Interstate 81 and the turnpike to patronize brands that they recognize will likely have some effect on how new eateries build and old ones fade.
“I think you’re going to find more chains coming to that market,” Cognetti said.
Meanwhile, independent institutions such as State Street Grill in Clarks Summit, just a mile or so beyond the central district surrounding the highway interchange, or Kyoto in the Abington Shopping Center, survive even though they lack national name recognition.
So what makes a restaurant thrive or dive? It’s not all location.
Ultimately, restaurants build loyalty with quality food. Atmosphere and location are secondary, Cognetti said.
Sometimes, those attributes come together.
Kevin McDonald, chef and owner of Damenti’s Restaurant in Luzerne County, always had the food and atmosphere. Tragedy four years ago let him test now how location plays into success.
After a fire destroyed his business tucked away on Route 309 in Butler Twp. near Hazleton in 2014, he reopened this year off Interstate 81 in Sugarloaf Twp., a prominent location with sweeping views of the Conyngham Valley near a main interstate exit to the City of Hazleton.
“I have six hotels around me,” he said. “You couldn’t get more traffic if you asked. We put all our cards on the table, and it was a good move.”
Two counties, same song
If shopping districts in Lackawanna and Luzerne counties aren’t dancing the same steps, they at least follow the same rhythm.
While Business Route 6 through Dickson City sports major retail and restaurant names, Northern Boulevard offers a slightly slower pace with a higher concentration of independent restaurants.
In Luzerne County, changes over the last two decades on Highland Park Boulevard in Wilkes-Barre Twp. and Route 315 through Plains Twp. tell a similar story.
Route 309 through the Back Mountain enjoys a vibe similar to Northern Boulevard, flush with independent eateries that cater to a suburbanites, Cognetti said.
“It’s a whole different feel, yet it’s the same demographic as the Abingtons,” he said.
The Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza accelerated new construction on Highland Park and Mundy Street. The giant corner became the region’s dining destination with new national names such as LongHorn Steakhouse and Buffalo Wild Wings, and stole some of the spotlight from another part of town that once held the title.
“It used to be that Kidder Street was our main shopping area,” said Lindsay Bezick, chief operating officer at the Greater Wilkes-Barre Chamber Commerce. “The arena was built, and that area became really one of our central places — it’s our main shopping/dining district.”
Meanwhile, legacy, family-owned and otherwise independent restaurants, for example Leggio’s, The Cafe and a new restaurant called Viva Farms, can sustain themselves along Route 315, the route that leads to Mohegan Sun Pocono casino.
“I think it’s going to keep evolving,” Bezick said. “And as it does, and those areas shift a little bit, I think we’re going to see even more of these restaurants and areas trying to adapt.”
Contact the writer: joconnell@timesshamrock.com; 570-348-9131; @jon_oc on Twitter
