Thursday, December 27, 2007

Restaurant business booms


Photos by Mark M. Hancock / © The Beaumont Enterprise

Lynn Ferguson, assistant manager at McAlister's Deli, prepares umbrellas on the patio for lunchtime business at the store in Beaumont on Friday, Dec. 21, 2007. The number of Southeast Texas deli-style restaurants has grown in recent years and the trend is expected to continue.


Tia Matos (right) explains deli options to Tazia and James Paul of Beaumont at McAlister's Deli in Beaumont. Texas is ranked 4th in the nation for restaurant sales growth and 10-year industry job growth.

Noticeably absent from local restaurant options are Middle Eastern, (non-Italian) Mediterranean or Indian restaurants.

We just returned from Dallas. While there, we pigged on Middle Eastern food and pleaded at each restaurant for them to open a franchise here. Since Beaumont is located on I-10 between Houston and Lake Charles it's an ideal setting.

2 comments:

HeadHunterBrian said...

In all my restaurant recruiting campaigns,I too have noticed a lack of diversity in the cultural offerings in Beaumont.

Mark M. Hancock said...

Brian,
If you could convince Fadi's or Mediterranean Cafe to open here, it would rock. As it is, we must travel to Houston for our tabouli fix.
There's a large university, several hospitals, hotel management teams, petro engineers as well as an India and Islamic centers to support one (or more) of these businesses.