Favorite lunch stop closing down

Every month since the Sizzler restaurant opened on U.S. 2 West in 1977, Donna Lerew and her family have been coming for lunch, laughs and ice cream.

On Wednesday afternoon, Lerew gathered with sisters, nieces, daughters and sisters-in-law for one last hurrah, since their favorite lunch stop is closing at the end of this weekend.

As they have always done, the women on Wednesday pushed the tables together and got down to hearing about each other's lives.

"For years, forever, every month," Lerew said of the monthly lunches.

The women meet to catch up with each other and to celebrate special occasions such as birthdays. They like that Sizzler is near their homes. They like the layout of the restaurant and the salad bar, with its neat rows of colorful melon slices. They also feel it's an easily accessible stop for lunch as some of their number struggle to walk or drive very far.

"It was always a special occasion," Geri Mitton said. "It's where we celebrated our birthdays."

Mitton was seated across from Rose Hollopeter, the oldest in the group at "91 next month."

The group agreed that the family gatherings each month are important, especially in times when the women all feel people are not spending enough time with their families.

"My granddaughter, Megan, this is where we always had her birthday," Phyllis Lynch said.

Lynch said they were just discussing where they will continue with the monthly luncheons, and they haven't decided on a place yet. Most think the new Sizzler restaurant at the north end of Kalispell is too far away.

George Kennedy, who owns the two Sizzler restaurants in Kalispell, has decided to close the one on U.S. 2.

"I had said I would try to keep it open," Kennedy said from Post Falls, Idaho. "That means it's got to make enough money to keep itself open. It's a purely business decision about keeping it open or not."

Kennedy made a trip from Idaho on June 10 to inform the employees that the restaurant is being shut down.

The restaurant will close its doors today. Kennedy has not yet decided whether to sell the building or lease it out.

Jeff Nelson, the general manager of the older Sizzler location, said that a lack of business is the main reason for the closure.

He said he feels that fewer people eating out coupled with the new store are the root causes.

"We were 52 percent down," Nelson said of flagging patronage. "The lowest we could have been at without losing [money] was 25 percent. We've had a lot of people complain. Eighty percent of our clientele is seniors and they've been coming here since it opened."

Eleven of the employees at the older location have secured jobs at the new restaurant in Hutton Ranch Plaza.

Twenty others have been laid off.

"We are trying everything we can to find employees jobs," Nelson said.

When Kennedy broke the news of the closing and layoffs to the Sizzler employees, Nelson said he felt blind-sided.

"I feel disappointment," Nelson said. "I don't want it to end. I've worked here six years. I started as a dishwasher and made it all the way to general manager."

Nelson said the staff feels like a family to him, as do many regulars. He mentioned a group of people who live in Libby and have stopped at the old Sizzler after every trip to Kalispell for years.

"A lot of people here I see more than my own family," he said.

Lerew and family have not yet decided on a new lunch stop. Lorraine Graham will miss the chats, the food and the staffers, who she thinks are very accommodating. Mostly, though, she will miss the Sizzler she has eaten at for so many years, a place full of fond memories.

"Just sorry, disappointed that it's closing," she said.

Reporter K.J. Hascall may be reached at 758-4439 or by email at kjhascall@dailyinterlake.com