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Originally Posted by Spudmrg
Seriously, can anyone actually in Harrisburg right now explain how things are going there? Are the papers making things look worse than they are?
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As far as...??? Sprawl, traffic, crime...?? I'm not sure what you are asking about exactly, Mike.
In no way, shape or form am I downplaying what Kamionka and Galiardo have done for the DT scene. But isn't there anyone else interested in DT nightlife too? I think some new blood would spur some much needed competition and push the scene even further ahead...
A TOUCH OF CRASS?
Downtown developer enjoys debate over diner
Monday, April 03, 2006
BY JOHN LUCIEW
Of The Patriot-News
It's a sun-splashed spring afternoon, and Bill Wurster of Fairview Twp. is sipping a scotch on the sidewalk outside Fisaga restaurant.
It's a cosmopolitan moment that's become a staple of Harrisburg's Restaurant Row.
Wurster peers across North Second Street and spies the partly finished, slightly tarnished, seen-better-days diner that has been trucked in from Lehigh County.
The traditional stainless-steel diner is to be the focal point of what's being billed as Harrisburg's latest downtown entertainment complex, one of two major establishments to open this spring.
But for Wurster, the sight of the diner sucks the sophistication right out of the city's bar and restaurant scene.
"I think it's a trailer park," said Wurster, who noted he considers himself a diner guy. "And I think the trailer park is going to affect property values. I saw them putting it in, and I couldn't believe it."
A few tables down, Diana Drew is so intrigued by the project that she puts down her wine glass to snap a picture.
"I think it's fabulous, personally," she said. "It's different. It's just a different attitude. I think it will do well."
That debate is just the kind of buzz the project's developers had in mind.
Manager and part-owner Ron Kamionka said the idea was to shake up the Second Street scene and break new ground in Harrisburg.
"It is a little different. It doesn't fit the mold of what's going on downtown. That's the whole point," Kamionka said.
The Tom Sawyer Entertainment Complex at 210 N. Second St. will feature much more than diner fare. Plans call for indoor and outdoor dining, a full bar and outdoor entertainment, including stages for bands and, eventually, open-air movies.
The diner is to open May 12.
The Quarter, a three-story New Orleans-style saloon, jazz club, raw bar and restaurant, is to open soon in the 300 block of North Second.
When the 1960s-era dining cars were wheeled into the city and plopped down on the vacant lot in front of the River Street parking garage, some said the scene looked like a train wreck smack in the middle of downtown.
None were more concerned than the owners of downtown's trendier spots, which are across the street.
"A lot of my customers ask me if I'm upset," said Stephen Weinstock, owner of Stock's on Second, a restaurant known for fancy food, an extensive wine list and dining experiences ensconced in dark woods and street views.
"I'm telling people that it's going to look a lot nicer when they have it finished," he said.
So is Nick Laus, who went upscale and trendy when he opened a downtown version of Cafe Fresco in the 200 block of Second in July.
The planned diner is a far cry from the pastel colors and modern furniture of his restaurant, but Laus said he's not worried that it will hurt Restaurant Row's image.
"You do hear people saying it's ugly, and when it first came, it was ugly," Laus said. "But I'm sure it will look good."
These owners said they're comforted that the diner is headed by Kamionka and Rick Galiardo, who own or operate a half-dozen downtown establishments between them.
"They have a good reputation for doing things right," Laus said.
Kamionka said his business philosophy is to zig when others zag, to keep the downtown scene fresh.
"We all want Harrisburg to survive past its [current business] cycle," Kamionka said. "To do that, we have to keep it interesting. We've got to continue to bring people in."
He decided the time was ripe for a little meat and potatoes and eggs to go along with Restaurant Row's wine sippers, beer guzzlers and gourmet dining crowd.
"A lot of potential customers have this perception of Harrisburg as too uppity," Kamionka said. "But the Olive Gardens and the Red Lobsters are packed. You have to give people a product they are comfortable with."
Even restaurateurs Weinstock and Laus said better a diner than another fancy place, which would represent direct competition.
Harrisburg's planning commission and architectural review boards signed off on the project unanimously, citing its temporary nature until the prime-but-vacant real estate could be developed further.
Still, some members harbored reservations.
"I just didn't care for the diner," said planning commissioner Elaine Burns. "It's just not my taste."
Don't tell that to Warren McCabe, a state employee and part-time bartender who has been coming downtown for drinks and meals for 25 years.
"Twenty-five years ago, there wasn't a lot of choice around," he said. "And a lot of times, bartenders get off late and they're hungry. It might be a good thing."
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