Sean C. Morgan
After a significant change of plans, Christian and Samantha Kim are running the restaurant they wanted, drawing special recognition from the Planning Commission.
The Kims received permission in 2003 from the Planning Commission to add a second floor to Speedee Mart along with a remodel of the existing store. They had planned to build a semi-formal restaurant on the first floor and an upscale café and lounge on the top floor, with open-air seating. They never got past paving the parking lot.
“The major problem I had was with the contractors, really,” Mr. Kim said. “We had a problem with the parking lot. It just didn’t look right to me. From there we had some misunderstandings.
“That set me back a lot. I lost a lot of my money, and my investors got kind of leery. That’s why we came up with this plan. I learned that this property was for sale, so I just jumped at it. I needed to fulfill my promises to the community. Basically, I didn’t want to let the community down after the meetings and hearings with the city.”
The Kims remodeled the restaurant across from Sweet Home Lanes, last known as Lorraine’s and sort of blended the two ideas they had for their convenience store site, a mixture of the restaurant vision and the lounge vision.
They opened the new restaurant, Sam’s City, on Oct. 21.
Some of the old ideas are still in place, Mr. Kim said. “Once we go through the busy season, which will be the summer, we’ll do that plan.”
That includes on-screen menus, upgrading the bar and getting a liquor license, Mr. Kim said. Then the restaurant will stay open later as Sam’s City Late Night, “more a cafe'” lounge atmosphere where (customers) can sit and enjoy a cold glass of beer or wine without all the hype of loud music. I want to basically cater to people who want to enjoy a quiet session with their family and friends.”
Mr. Kim is “tickled to death” that their hard work has been recognized by the Planning Commission, which presented an award for renovating an old building.
“I’m very pleased with the response, the quality of food we put out and the service we provide,” Mr. Kim said. “We spent almost four months just trying to get everything right. I just basically wanted to thank the community for the support and our loyal customers.”
The menu is made from scratch following Mrs. Kim’s recipes, Mr. Kim said. She makes dishes, testing them on Mr. Kim, and he handles the business end of the store.
The menu is mostly Japanese right now, but the Kims plan to serve a variety of foods.