Paradise Lost: Restaurant in Carson Mall closes

Over the weekend, the Paradise Cove Cafe in Carson Mall closed its doors, the end to a labor of love for owners Doug and Jamesa Cramer.

"Relieved" was the first word Doug said when I asked him how he was doing. The efforts to keep the restaurant in business over the last year and 10 months had clearly taken a toll.

Full disclosure: Doug and Jamesa have been friends of mine for a number of years, and I was openly pulling for them to make this restaurant work. As a result, I've been a witness to this saga playing out. It's an interesting study on starting and running a local business during troubled times.

I remember writing the story about the Paradise Cove opening up back in April 2010, and the Cramer's excitement at the time. They enjoy vacationing in the tropics, and wanted to bring that atmosphere to Paradise Cove. Jamesa had always wanted to have a gift shop, and had been collecting merchandise for a long time before they opened the doors to the Funky Parrot, attached to the restaurant.

But in the end, it didn't work.

Too Good to Pass Up

Back in 2008, the Cramers had everything going their way. Mom and Pop's Diner on South Carson Street had a steady, established clientele. The Friday Nights @ 3rd Street events they started eight years before continued to do well. They also provided food service for Carson High School that was profitable.

Then came the opportunity to open another restaurant in Carson Mall.

"It was a deal that was too good to turn down," Doug said.

According to him, the mall offered to build out the new restaurant with no money up front. Add to that $40,000 from Carson City's redevelopment program, and it was too good to pass up. Besides, Doug said, they had profits from their other businesses to invest to get the restaurant off the ground and profitable.

The mall's owner The Carrington Company had a strategy for revitalizing the property that focused on the 1,500+ state employees who were located just across Stewart Street. By turning the east side of the mall into a kind of food court, the plan was to get draw people to cross the street.

Cramer liked the concept. He had watched for years as his customers crossed Carson Street from the Nevada Legislature to eat at Mom & Pop's.

In September 2008, they took the leap and signed a contract with Carson Mall. It took a year and half to get Paradise Cove Cafe ready.

A Turn of Fortunes

A month after Paradise Cove Cafe opened, their luck turned.

First, the Carson City School District ended their food service contract at the high school after changing over to Aramark to be the sole provider of food service for all the schools.

At the same time, Doug had a falling out over the Fridays @ 3rd Street concerts, and stopped participating after the 2009 shows were done.

With those two revenue streams gone, it left little money to get Paradise Cove off to the start they had hoped.

Their Friday night summer concerts were one of the bright spots that brought in customers and revenue. But as summer changed to winter, their business went south.

When the business didn't boom from the beginning, Doug and Jamesa saw adjustments they would have liked to make, but most of those required money didn't have. They made small changes, such as offering breakfast, but it wasn't enough to turn the restaurant around.

Doug said he was encouraged at the beginning when people said they were happy they could get some of the same good food at Paradise Cove that they were used to getting at Mom & Pop's.

But that was a double-edged sword. The similar menu offerings may have pulled some customers away from Mom & Pop's, while not creating a distinctive dining experience for the new restaurant.

In the end, the restaurant lacked its own identity, and didn't find the niche that would allow it to survive in a crowded market.

Doug also found himself stretched thin trying to keep both restaurants running. A back problem complicated things further.

The local restaurant scene was changing as well. Olive Garden and Red Hut opened, as well as Johnny Rockets and the group of other restaurants that are part of the Carson Lanes remodeling. The freeway section to Fairview opened, rerouting potential customers away from the Cramer's restaurants.

And the stream of state workers crossing Stewart Street at lunchtime didn't materialize. State budget cutbacks and furloughs added to an already depressed economy.

There is also the lack of an anchor store for the mall, a problem that predated Paradise Cove. The businesses in the mall would benefit greatly from the increased foot traffic of a major retailer, and the Carrington Company has made finding a new anchor a top priority. But most major retailers aren't doing much expanding until the economy improves.

Meanwhile, local businesses do what they can to survive. And some, like Paradise Cove Cafe, don't make it.

Back Where They Started

Now the Cramers are back working at Mom & Pop's. It's been the one constant for them, paying their bills for more than a decade. They also recently took over doing food service inside the Nevada State Legislature building. Doug said that while it doesn't make much during off years, he's looking forward to doing good business during the next legislative session in 2013.

Doug said that most of the money from the city's redevelopment fund has already been paid off, and that he intends to pay it all back as soon as he can.

Cramer said he appreciates the opportunity the Carson Mall gave him to open Paradise Cove Cafe. He and Jamesa will miss the tropical setting they created there, and the giant beach mural that takes up one whole wall.

Now that the wave they were riding has crashed and swept their dreams back into the sea, the Cramers are catching their breath and seeking out calmer waters.