Reido Grills, You Eat. Reido Speaks, You Listen

Dear Highly Esteemed Reido Fan:

Well, you may or may not have heard the sad news. So here 'tis. In short, Reido's will be closing at the end of August. I don't know for how long yet or whether it's permanent. But here's the whole story.

I rent this space in the evening from Gus, who runs his business here during the day. A couple of weekends ago, one of Gus's regulars, who is also a Reido's fan, came in and told me that Gus was seeing all the business I was doing in the evening and was going to shut me down and bring in his brother during the day so he could open up during the evening hours himself--presumably to take advantage of the customer base I have built up. Sure enough, shortly thereafter I started to see Gus's brother around during the day. Then, the first week in August, Gus gave me notice to be out by the end of the month. He confirmed that he intended to open in the evenings. He will not be serving sliders. So that's the background and I only share it with you because I want you to know that it is not for lack of your patronage that I am closing.

I am very grateful for the support you have shown my little venture in the past. And while my business has indeed improved dramatically in the last few months, let's face it, I am by no means getting rich selling buck-fifty sliders, most of which cross the counter only between 1:00am and 3:00am on weekends. This has always been a labor of love for me and I thank you from the bottom of my heart for letting me share my little restaurant dream with you and for helping to make it possible.

So what does the future hold? Good question. I don't know yet and I am exploring my options and seeing if getting into my own space is possible. That said, the immediate future is a bit of a logistical nightmare and I could use your indulgence. My current staff of two have both left for school. Since I can't really advertise in the job market for employees, given the short length of the fuse on my current existence, I am going to have to get by with those I can round up to pick up a shift or two. Your patience in this regard is very much appreciated—we’ll be peddling just as fast as we can.

Also, we will be closed the next 2 Mondays (August 15 & 22). I am going to need some additional down time to keep my head from exploding. We will most probably do one last Steak Night on Monday August 29th. Look for that email later. I also want to find some means of thanking you all and maybe we'll do a farewell party on Tuesday the 30th. We'll see.

In the meantime, come in a lot and help me build up a nest egg so I can move somewhere else. And know that, even through all his crankiness, Reido loves you.

Love and peace,

Reido

So there you have it. If you'd like more updates, Reido asked that you please email him at Reidoslider@aol.com so he could add you to his mailing list.

It appears GM Steakhouse will have to learn the hard way. We hope for their own sake, they understand they aren't going to check into the late-night dining game and find the same success. Actually, a part of us wants to organize a boycott. Knowing that GM is a small, locally run diner is their only saving grace. But they should know this: It's not about giving people a place to eat at 2am. It's not about the location. It's about the rapport Reido and his loyal customers share...and those magical sliders.