[Babubhat]

The customers or lack thereof have spoken

[Stu from NYC]

Originally Posted by PugMom

there is no decent chinese anywhere in the villages, believe me, i've looked. i'm an 'upnorth', where chinese is made to perfection, with a flavor like no other, & have yet to come across it here

We have found Kayame to be pretty good for takeout

[HoosierPa]

Originally Posted by Villages Kahuna

With $15 hamburgers that didn’t even include French fries, that was predictable from the beginning. We took one look at their expensive online menu and never visited even once.

With high quality food and not a belly stuffer priced meal, It would make it with different demographics

[Dr Winston O Boogie jr]

Originally Posted by Keefelane66

Very good question you’ll be surprised between 200% to 500% markup. Of course buying supplies from food distributor similar to SYSCO or Cheney Bros is way less expensive than Publix, Walmart or WD prices.

Anyone who has ever been in business can understand that high Markups may be necessary to cover expenses. Businesses in The Villages are paying much higher rents and have to pay a percentage of profits to The Villages. I’m only trying to point out that markups and margins are only one side of the equation.

[Dr Winston O Boogie jr]

Originally Posted by DonnaNi4os

I had the very best burger of my life there when it first opened. I wish I had the chance to go back for another but it sounds like it’s too late. They were pricey but my burger was worth it. I must admit that I’m not surprised to hear that they are closing, but I’m also a bit sad.

Try the burgers at Wolfgang Puck’s. Expensive but awesome.

[Dr Winston O Boogie jr]

Originally Posted by Stu from NYC

We have found Kayame to be pretty good for takeout

.

I agree. Koyame is the best Chinese food in The Villages.

[Aloha]

There seems to be a growing number of restaurants with outrageously high prices. These are perfect outlets for seniors who wish to reduce their inheritance for their relatives to fight over.

[Babubhat]

Current restaurants value proposition is low. It’s always been a tough business. Expect more to fold

[tophcfa]

Just read on the online news site that the Farmshed venue is being taken over by the FMK Restaurant Group. That’s the best news I have heard regarding the Spanish Springs area in a long time. In my opinion FMK is the premier restaurant operator in the entire Villages, operating establishments like the Chop House and Blue Fin. Hopefully they will continue the excellence and open a comparable restaurant in Spaninh Springs. My vote would be for another seafood place similar to Blue Fin : )

[dewilson58]

Originally Posted by tophcfa

That’s the best news I have heard

Hope they don't spread themselves too thin.

[ThirdOfFive]

Originally Posted by MrChipster

Welcome to $15.00 minimum “living wage” - thanks progressive thoughts (demands).

So true.

If that $15 or so minimum wage is pricing restaurants out of the range of (relatively) affluent Villagers, just think of what it is doing to the people whose ONLY “dining out” option is the burger-and-fries joint? Answer is obvious.

Same dynamic at Wal-Mart and other cut-rate establishments. Most of us visit Wal-Mart from time to time by choice. But for some people it is the ONLY choice, and those establishments are going more and more toward automated services. Most Wal-marts now have far more automated checkout stations than they have live checkout clerks.

What good is a $15 minimum wage if you’re not working at all? Again, answer is obvious.

[pauld315]

If you want to be successful here you need to offer huge portions at cheap prices period.

[walterray1]

Koyame has always been good in our opinion. However, they apparently were fairly recently bought out by a new owner. We got a takeout last week and it was still good. Will have to see how they do over time.

[tophcfa]

Originally Posted by pauld315

If you want to be successful here you need to offer huge portions at cheap prices period.

Chop House would prove that to be incorrect, people don’t mind paying a premium for good quality food. I have no problem paying up for a well prepared quality cut of filet minion. The problem with Farmshed is they were trying to sell premium quality Hamburg?

[chet2020]

Too bad, one of our favorites. Pricy, but worth it.