No Jacket Required

Think casual dining means the end of country club panache? Not by a long shot, say those who have crossed the divide.

by Julie Sturgeon (editor@clubandresortbusiness.com)
October 2006
 

Longboards Bar and Grill (above) at Plumas Pines Golf Resort in Graeagle, Calif., reflects mountain living with its hardwood floors, rock walls and longboard skis adorning the walls.

That's the conclusion John Wright, General Manager and Chief Operating Officer of Norwood Hills Country Club in St. Louis, reached after studying the numbers for his new bar and grill, which opened in October 2005. The dining area seats 160 people, the bar/lounge holds 80 and the patio can accommodate another 200. Still, demand for the new facility "is all we can handle and then some," Wright reports.

Meanwhile, Norwood Hills' formal dining room opens only on Saturday night, and the staff considers 12 patrons a heavy load.

Stories like this are being retold at properties across the country, as the bar-and-grill concept eclipses the linen tablecloth and jacket-and-tie atmosphere that said "club dining" in the past. But making the switch isn't just a matter of changing the dress code and adding sandwiches. The first keystone is to build a casual room that fits the club itself.

Signature Touches
Take, for instance, Signatures Bar and Grill at Baywood Greens in Long Neck, Del. It features a 25-foot-long bar as the centerpiece of the room, complete with a glass mirror sporting the club logo. Seating consists of 14 swivel chairs along the bar, three oversized leather couches surrounded by five large leather chairs, and a few tables that seat up to for people each. The grill also boasts chic touches like mahogany wood, hardwood floors and soft lighting. The "dress code," though, demands nothing more than t-shirts and shorts.

At the Longboards Bar and Grill at the Plumas Pines Golf Resort in Graeagle, Calif., the area's mountain-living style is reflected by the room's hardwood floors and old-school longboard skis on the rock walls (see photo at left). Head Golf Pro Brandon Bowling even mounted canoes and parked a hand-carved bear at the restaurant's entrance, to keep with the outdoorsy theme.

The pumpkin color scheme lends a fresh, modern twist, while dimmer lights set an elegant mood after the sun sets. This bar also features a 25-foot, dark wood counter. "All the windows face the golf course, so you have a view of the ponds and the Feather River," Bowling notes.

Even at an established club like The Breakers Resort in Palm Beach, Fla., executives chose a casual beach theme for the new Ocean Grill. The idea, says Nick Velardo, Director of Food and Beverage and Ocean Club Operations, was to imitate the comfortable sophistication of a private yacht. So the design includes an open-beam ceiling, a three-dimensional mural of a ship, teakwood and Mediterranean-colored glass accents. Yet the bar appeals to the more typical sports-oriented crowd, too. "It was packed in here during the World Cup," Velardo says.

The Ocean Grill went a step beyond simple décor to establish its niche among eight restaurant choices at The Breakers. It's a self-seating restaurant, and the staff dresses in shorts and Polo Ralph Lauren short-sleeved shirts, "reflecting exactly what our guests wear," Velardo explains. And the layout lets diners see the activity in the kitchen as tropical music plays over the sound system. "The idea is to create a lot of energy," he adds.

In its first year of operation, the grill certainly has created excitement on the books. The average check amount continues to increase, yet the restaurant isn't pulling dollars away from its sibling eateries on the property. Velardo feels the atmosphere invites families to hang around longer, ordering appetizers and desserts. He's thinking of extending the current hours (11 a.m. to 7 p.m.), to allow for a longer dinner hour.

Balancing Act
Separate buildings, of course, are a luxury many clubs and resorts can't enjoy—making it more challenging to balance some members' wishes for formal options with the new, more casual trend.

Baywood Greens has one entrance to its dining facilities, and hostesses ask each party if they prefer the dining room, grill or veranda. From the main hallway, diners are then guided either to the left or right, for completely separate experiences.

"Maybe two tables in the dining room can see into the bar and grill, and vice versa," says F&B Director Paul Oliva.

An even bigger divide occurs in the menu choices. Diners on the formal side may not order from the grill menu, though grill patrons are welcome to select from the entire food package. The reason is simple: to let the formal side of the house keep its dignity. "We don't want people sitting in an upscale section eating chicken tenders and hamburgers," Oliva explains.

Plumas Pines, with only one room to offer, still accommodates a variety of dining options. Bowling arranged banquette seating around the bar for those who want the bar-and-grill experience, with formal dining tables ringing the outer edges of the room. Moveable walls allow him to section off specific tables for catered events. In good weather, he takes advantage of deck seating—another option popular with families.

"I have two little ones and my sister has a toddler," Bowling notes. "We got together with friends for a table of 12 out on the deck the other night, just to give the kids the ability to run around a bit. There was a couple on the interior just around the corner having an intimate, one-on-one, bottle-of-wine type dinner, and we didn't disturb them a bit. You can have both."

And when you do, the payoffs are clear. Plumas Pines has doubled the gross dollars it expected to make since it opened Longboards, Bowling reports. And at Baywood Greens, Oliva says F&B sales are "surprisingly up," despite a decline elsewhere in the region.

At these clubs, and many more like them, casual dining is indeed proving to be a thriving new breed.