How much are diners putting their money where their mouth is?
12/30/08 | 26 comments

How much are diners putting their money where their mouth is?


Economy’s effects on Bangor restaurants mixed
By Jessica Bloch
BDN Staff
BANGOR DAILY NEWS PHOTO BY JOHN CLARKE RUSS
Chris Richards of Bradford, a line cook at Governor’s restaurant in Bangor, retrieves a plate near a customer’s lunch order Monday afternoon. Buy Photo

BANGOR, Maine — While many restaurants in southern Maine are reeling from national economic problems, a quick sampling of the city’s eating establishments showed more mixed results.

Restaurants such as Governor’s and Nicky’s Cruisin Diner seemed to be faring well despite the faltering economy. Panda Garden Chinese restaurant, on the other hand, has seen a big drop in business.

Randy Wadleigh, who owns five of the six Governor’s restaurants around the state, said his November and year-to-date numbers were very strong compared with numbers from last year. The best numbers, so far, are coming out of the restaurants in Bangor, Old Town and Waterville.

Governor’s tends toward comfort food and New England fare and offers a variety of entrees starting at $6.99, Wadleigh said Monday. It’s also a restaurant that draws a variety of people — those who might normally go to a fast-food restaurant looking for a nicer meal and fine diners who are seeking a diner experience.

Those factors, Wadleigh believes, help keep the restaurant humming.

“In general, I’m very nervous. I think the winter’s going to be tough on a lot of people,” he said. “But historically our concept and name does well in recession times.”

Locations in Lewiston and South Portland haven’t seen the same strong numbers, Wadleigh said. A Governor’s location in Houlton, which was also a franchise, closed in April 2008. Rising energy and food costs were to blame, according to earlier reports. A Governor’s restaurant in Presque Isle is a franchise and is not owned by Wadleigh.

This is a rough time of year for many restaurants, Wadleigh added, as people cut back on costs after the expenses of the holidays, try to stick to New Year’s resolutions about eating healthfully, and are reluctant to go out in bad weather. Things usually pick up around February school vacation, he said.

Wadleigh added that the National Restaurant Association has warned members that food costs from distributors could be up as much as 4 percent in the coming year. Governor’s does not have any price increases planned at this time.

Nicky’s on Union Street in Bangor is another source of comfort food. The winter weather, which so far has produced just one major snowstorm, has helped numbers.

“Actually, because there are fewer snowstorms, even our slow days are beating last year’s days,” said Karen Day, who owns the eatery with her husband, Howard.

“Knock on wood, we haven’t seen a huge drop,” she said. “With the [falling] cost of home heating oil and gas and the mild weather so far, those are some pluses for restaurant owners.”

Diners are strategizing in ordering, however. Karen Day said customers might not order soda, sticking to free water instead or choosing one order of french fries to share instead of each diner ordering a separate plate.

“They’re doing different things,” she said. “But going out to eat is still something that is not really a superexpensive form of entertainment.”

Mike and Josephine Yao of Panda Garden, however, said business has dropped by around 30 percent from last year at the Franklin Street restaurant. Some of the company Christmas parties they expected to book this year didn’t materialize, and regular customers such as businesspeople who take clients to lunch have told the Yaos their budgets are tight.

“It used to be once a week,” Mike Yao said of his regulars. “Now it’s once a month.”

The Yaos are hoping to ride out the economic downturn and said they have no plans to raise prices despite the decline in business.

“When you raise [prices], you only scare people away,” Josephine Yao said.

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Comments
26 comments on this item
On 12/30/08 at 6:43 AM, Jenna_T wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

"How much are diners putting their money where their mouth is?" Hmmm....

"Diners" = plural; "mouth is" = singular. This headline sure don't sound right. Is there an editor in the BDN house? Sir/Madam: Should not this headline read "How much are diners putting their money where their mouths are?"?

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On 12/30/08 at 6:47 AM, Jet794 wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

Because the old saying is "Put your money where your mouth is"....picky picky picky!!!!

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On 12/30/08 at 6:59 AM, Gosocks wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

Jenna_T is not being picky, she is simply pointing out that the BDN's editing has gone downhill on a fast sled. Editors please take note, the AP Styleguide is available at most bookstores.

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On 12/30/08 at 8:14 AM, boogyman wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

Pretty bad when the editors even miss the glaring errors in the headlines. Good thing they are not accountants.

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On 12/30/08 at 8:40 AM, eastmainer wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

Actually that saying has nothing to do with eating.

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On 12/30/08 at 8:57 AM, RealCherry wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

I know, I had to read the headline a few times before I figured out what it was about.

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On 12/30/08 at 9:32 AM, anne_of_mdi wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

The headline was a disastrously unsuccessful attempt to use a colloquial expression within a question, a situation to be avoided at all costs. Maybe it should read, Diners Find It Cheaper to Eat Money, or Diners Mouth Off About Money, or Diners, Dining and Dinero. Anyone?

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On 12/30/08 at 10:27 AM, David889327 wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

Here's another example of the "step-child attitude" that Bangor has toward the Bangor Mall. There are a number of restaurants in the Mall neighborhood, most of them very good ones, and most of them appear to be reasonably busy, and none of them were referenced in the story.

Full disclosure: yes, I own Bangor Mall.

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On 12/30/08 at 11:35 AM, Gosocks wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

David...Few of the Bangor Mall restaurants are locally-owned like the ones mentioned in the article. It would be nice to have a few more family-owned restaurants in the greater Bangor area.

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On 12/30/08 at 12:56 PM, vlhall wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

There is a great locally owned restaurant near the mall.... Miguel's! The food is fantastic and super reasonable.

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On 12/30/08 at 1:02 PM, Woody1 wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

Why is everyone conveniently forgetting about the word "their" before "mouth is"? Because then, they would have nothing to write about and get their names in the paper.

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On 12/30/08 at 1:05 PM, David889327 wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

Was "locally-owned" one of the criteria for selection in the story? Some of my favorites are not "locally-owned".

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On 12/30/08 at 4:06 PM, eastmainer wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

It shouldn't matter if a restaurant is locally owned or not. I'm sure the employees are local people who spend their paychecks locally.

I've noticed how the media , newspaper, radio and TV give some businesses these 'free ads' while others are totally ignored.

We prefer the Brewer Twin Plaza Buffet. There's a huge choice of food, great prices and the servers do a good job.

Anyone else want to plug their favorite eating place ? LOL

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On 12/30/08 at 6:02 PM, MarketMom wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

For my money, I like Twin Plaza, too. WIth two little kids who tend to stick to familiar items, it's great for all of us, the family that runs it is super nice as well. Now here's my restaurant commentary....

Nicky's....Getting pretty expensive for a diner. Also we've had to send food back a couple of times for being either undercooked or just plain cold. Lastly, with two kids in tow, it would be nice to get the check to the table a little sooner, we always end up waiting forever for the check, even when we ask for it outright.

Governor's....Could not be more kid friendly, prices are decent and the food is plentiful, as well as hot. I have a child with autism and I always ask for a table out of the way of other diners so my daughter's not so overwhelmed and can actually focus on the food and they are always very kind and considerate of her needs, even seating us in a closed dining area.

Chili's....Only eaten there once, food was stone cold and they mixed up every drink order at our table and after serving us our food, we didn't see our waitress again until one of us got up and went into the kitchen to find her.

Never been to Miguel's, but have heard great things about it...maybe one night this winter we'll go as a treat.

Ooh, almost forgot. I'm not sure of the name, it's an Asian (Asian Palace II?) place at the intersection of Ohio and Griffin Rd. behind the Webber store. My father brought over take out one night when he was up visiting from NJ and while I can't say how much it cost...the food was fantastic. MSG free, piping hot (a big deal to me, sorry) and each portion gave us leftovers for days. Maybe they have lunch specials?

And finally Fairmount Market. (anyone making the connection?) Homemade, fresh and affordable. Daily soups, huge sandwiches and great pizza, and they deliver.

What about everyone else?

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On 12/30/08 at 6:17 PM, David889327 wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

MarketMom, try Miguel's - it tingles on the way in, and on the way out.

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On 12/30/08 at 7:24 PM, wisewoman wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

Hmmmm, did the headline change the meaning of the story? NO Are you people clutching at straws to make yourselves look like you have a clue? YES!

There are times to be a grammatically persnickity person, and times when the cadence of the sentence take presedence....get a grip. If all the persons who commented really wanted to make a difference, they would have mastered in English and TAUGHT SCHOOL! Get off your uneducated high horses you self centered idiots!

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On 12/30/08 at 7:27 PM, wisewoman wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

Dinero? In a head line? last thing I knew I lived in Maine, a part of the United States of America...... dinero is NOT a native word and if anyone wants to move here, the really need to learn the language. If you think we need to add the language, well....... you need to leave our country, fascist!

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On 12/30/08 at 8:10 PM, ryanrrobbins wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

Each diner has only one mouth.

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On 12/30/08 at 9:22 PM, Kevin_of_Bangor wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

The headline was simple word play and nothing more. If you cannot understand that I feel bad for you.

Nicky’s and the Gov's both have good food and you do get what you paid for but I prefer Ruby Tuesdays or the Texas Roadhouse. I've yet to hit Miguel’s but maybe I'll do it this weekend. Bangor lacks any decent real Mexican food so I’m hoping Miguel's will change my mind when I do eat there.

As for the Mall. The so called pizza joint in there is a joke. Food sucks and is very over priced. They have the Indian food place, which I don't eat and the so called oriental food place just gives me the creeps. The sub shop looks ok but again, over priced food. DQ is good for ice cream and nothing more but again, very pricey for what you get. Why Pretzel Time left I have no clue. I enjoyed them but they went poof. Best thing in the Mall is Ruby Tuesdays. The RT in Brewer sucks compared to the one in Mall.

Twin City in Brewer is pretty nasty as well. I know some people love it but I went in there once, never will again. Food was terrible and the Chiles in Bangor was terrible. Visited it once and regretted it.

To bad we don't have an Outback. While I enjoy the Texas Roadhouse nobody can beat a blooming onion from the Outback.

Ok, my rant is over. Off my soap box I go.

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On 12/30/08 at 9:32 PM, spent34 wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

I agree. Miguel's is very reasonable and well made Mexican food. The Margarita's are a must!!! Service is always great.

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On 12/30/08 at 9:45 PM, boogyman wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

Guess welfares paying better than I thought

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On 12/30/08 at 10:15 PM, boogyman wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

If I want good food, I go to Balthazar on Spring St. In Manhatten. Anything around here is a dissapointment.

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On 12/31/08 at 8:40 AM, hungryone wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

I have been relating to this article for years. I am a big food connoisseur and crave great service and excellent food. There are a few good restaurants in Bangor but only a couple have really stood out from the rest. I have recently been to Miguels Mexican restaurant and loved it! I could tell the food was fresh and authentic and the service was great too. It is not 5 star dinning but a great place to bring the family and hang out with friends. I felt welcome there and treated like a king with the huge portions they hand out. I plan on going back on a regular basis. Yes, Bangor has some good chain restaurants but they are very staple and predicable.

Happy New Years Bangor!!

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On 1/3/09 at 5:45 PM, Larryt39 wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

What nobody likes Applebee's? Very good food always. Not so when we had them over here in Brewer. By the way, Kevin you know something that many on this site don't know about the Twin City Buffet..I'm with you, never again there..Larry T. Doughty, South Brewer..

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On 1/3/09 at 5:55 PM, OldBangor wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

Bugaboo? Harp Ale on TAP!!!!!!

A tad pricey, but I've never had a bad meal.

Stoopid ambiance, but what the hey?

OldBangor

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On 1/3/09 at 6:03 PM, dandlmom wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

hungryone...Miguels is good, but it doesn't even compare to Margaritas...yum-o!

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