Airline to discontinue I.F. to Boise flight

SeaPort Airlines has announced that it plans to discontinue its flight service between Idaho Falls and Boise at the end of the year.

Apparently, the lagging economy and the company's aircraft financing problems are to blame for the decision, said Idaho Falls Regional Airport Director Len Nelson, in a press release issued Monday by the city of Idaho Falls. City and economic development officials will continue to seek another viable carrier to take over the route.

SeaPort began offering the route June 18, nearly a year after Horizon Airlines discontinued its nonstop Boise-Idaho Falls flights, which it had been offering for more than 20 years.

Anyone with a SeaPort ticket to Boise for after Dec. 31 should contact the airline directly at (888) 573-2767 or online at www.seaportair.com.

More press for Idaho Falls on The Daily Beast

Wow! After recently ranking No. 2 as the best place in the United States to start over, Idaho Falls now comes in at No. 18 on The Daily Beast's list of America's Top 25 Coldest Cities. In other words, Idaho Falls is a great place to start over if you don't mind freezing.

I can imagine many readers of The Daily Beast -- the Newsweek-sponsored blog put out by former New Yorker editor Tina Brown -- taking a look at many of the cities on this list and saying to themselves, "I wouldn't live there if you paid me to." Considering their chic, Bozeman, Mont., St. Albans, Vt. and Minneapolis might be obvious exceptions. But Fairbanks? Grand Forks?

Before posting the link, I want to add that my old Post Register colleague Ken Retallic once heard me complaining about subzero temperatures here and laughed me to scorn. Ken came to Idaho Falls from Grand Forks, and still feels this place is more like Belize.

http://www.thedailybeast.com/galleries/2010/12/10/america-s-25-coldest-cities.html

Buddy's to close Idaho Falls restaurant

We here at BizMojo Idaho would much rather write about a restaurant opening than one closing, but it is our sad duty to report that Buddy's on Channing Way will be shutting its doors at the end of the year.

Give them credit for trying. They opened in early August 2010, right about when Idaho Falls was beginning to feel the full effect of the economic downturn.

For those of you whose response is, "How could they? I love Buddy's!" ask yourself, when was the last time you ate there? The business hasn't been good enough, said the manager I talked to Thursday.

Running a restaurant is a tough business, and for locally owned places it can be hard to compete with chains like Olive Garden, which, as we know, have deep pockets and a devoted following.

But the commonly held notion that 90 percent of restaurants fail in their first year is a myth. I've posted a link below to an article that was published earlier this year by Randy White, CEO of White Hutchison Leisure & Learning Group, a consulting group based in Kansas City, Mo. Here are some key points from a three-year study they did:

• During the first year of operation, slightly over one-quarter of all restaurants closed or changed ownership. By the end of their third year, just short of 60% of all restaurants closed or changed ownership. The turnover rate varied little between independent and chain restaurants.
• Restaurant turnover was highest in areas with higher concentrations of restaurants. In other words, the greater the number of restaurants for a given population, the greater the failure rate.
• A successful restaurant requires focus on a clear concept that drives all activities, an operating philosophy that encompasses business operations as well as employee and customer relations. "Failed restaurant owners, when asked about their concept, discussed only the food product," White wrote. "The researchers concluded it was obvious from the interviews that food quality does not guarantee success; the concept must be well defined beyond the type of food served."

Buddy's in Pocatello, an institution there, will remain open, so anyone hankering for "Buddy's Breath" will still have that option.

http://www.whitehutchinson.com/blog/2011/02/the-truth-about-restaurant-failure-rates/ 

That One Place opening Monday in downtown I.F.

After more than a half-year of vacancy, the space at 552 North Capital Avenue, where Pachanga's used to be, is going to be opening Monday as That One Place.

The restaurant, which has been at 569 Third Street since opening in April, is moving downtown for better traffic and because owner Trent Walker says he wants to be part of the downtown scene. The menu focuses on sandwiches, soups, wraps and rice bowls, all fresh from scratch.

A native of Salt Lake City, Walker has been in Idaho Falls since 2001, when he came to work for Dole Fruit and Vegetable. From there, he went to work for Nicholas Foods, supplying restaurants in Idaho Falls, Driggs, Victor and Jackson, Wyo. Visiting all the restaurants that he did, he had plenty of inspiration and ideas once he started planning to open his own.

He said he is under no illusions about going into the restaurant field. "It's a tough market, but if you can find your own niche I think you can do well," he said.

The name "That One Place" came from his 16-year-old son, who'd heard his grandparents talking all the time about places they'd eaten around the world, e.g. "Remember that one place we went to in Italy?"

"He said, 'You ought to call it that,' and we liked the idea," Walker said.

The restaurant manager is Ashley Mueller. They provide catering, carryout and delivery. For more information, call 529-9804.

Chick-fil-A: The Final Countdown

Thought you've seen enough of people camping out for a business opening? Get ready for Chick-fil-A's first stand-alone restaurant in Idaho, which is opening Dec. 8 at 3003 S. 25th East (Hitt Road).

The first 100 adults in line at the new restaurant will win free Chick-fil-A for a year, said Cindy Chapman, spokeswoman for CP Communications. Sounds simple, right? Not so fast.

Here are the rules: The first 100 adults in line by 6 a.m. Dec. 8, each will receive 52 free Chick-fil-A meal certificates for a year -- a total of more than $26,000 in free food being given away. But participants 18 years and older with identification can line up no earlier than 24 hours prior to the opening. In the event that there are more than 100 people lined up at 6 a.m. Dec. 7, all 100 spots will be determined by a raffle.

See http://www.chick-fil-a.com/Locations/First-100 for complete rules.

Chick-fil-A has been doing a First 100 promotion at all grand openings for eight years, since opening a restaurant in Arizona and noticing people showing up 15 hours early. Since then, raving fans have been arriving more than 24 hours in advance, packing tents, lawn chairs, computers, TVs, couches and all kinds of gear to make their wait more comfortable and entertaining.

While it has no control over the weather, Chick-fil-A provides security, entertainment, games, and, of course, plenty of fresh Chick-fil-A.

The new Chick-fil-A restaurant, one of 90 opening this year, will be open from 6:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday. Operator Lauren Mosteller anticipates the restaurant will bring 65 new jobs to the community.

The scene outside a recent Chick-fil-A opening.