Every time I am going north to Ormond Beach or Palm Coast, I check this construction site, just a couple of hundred yards from the I-95 interchange in Holly Hill. The building is not finished and the construction crew is rushing trying to complete the project, but the sign Vince Carter's is already there.
For those, who is as far from basketball as I am, he is a NBA athlete, who recently was acquired by Orlando Magic, and is now so close to home, which is... Daytona Beach. A very poipular and loved celebrity in Daytona Beach. And Vince Carter's Restaurant is his newest project.
Vince is not a stranger to restaurant and bars. He is involved with one in Canada.
Local businesses are struggling to survive, and many restaurants don't making this endeavor both encouraging and surprising. We want the Restaurant to succeed, and we even are ready to believe that his name and his buddies, coming here with him to support the venture, would help to make it.
The restaurant was planned to open in September, but construction was delayed, and the new opening date is January 19, 2010. According to Vince's mom, Ms. Carter-Scott, there will be 135 employees. The restaurant will be open for lunch and dinner. Patrons will be able to watch sporting events on a 105-inch high definition flat screen TV with surround sound, and would also be offered some merchandise.
"WE WANT THE BEST!!! "Upscale Casual Dining" like none other; 400 premier seats in several unique dining environments, under one amazing roof" screamed the help wanted ad. The newspaper reports that as of Wednesday last week about 250 - 275 people have applied for positions with Vince Carter's.
"The NBA star's restaurant will continue taking applications until Christmas at 2150 LPGA Blvd. 
The restaurant has a target opening date of Jan. 19, Tinstman (the operations manager - J.Z) said".
The restaurant will have a main dining room, a piano bar called Mikala, a sports grill and a VIP dining area. A 10,400 square foot restaurant is built on 3.46 acre parcel, located at the southeast corner of Technology Boulevard and Gateway N. Drive, part of the Gateway Business Park. I read that they paid $2.1 Mil for land and the construction and finishing the project was expected to cost $3.75 Mil and as we all know the final numbers always tend to be higher. With the final day of opening now scheduled for January 19, the work on the site is hectic.
So, what so we have here if we do not put on our rosy glasses? We have a huge restaurant (by Daytona standards) built in nowhere. I do not think that being close to I-95 is a big advantage, as traffic is not really a big problem for the area. There is a large residential community not far from it - LPGA, but even smaller restaurant won't survive without a steady flow of people.
It is still an upscale restaurant and sports bar in a not so upscale area. The Business park is the project in progress, and will not provide much support even at lunch. There are simply not that many people there. And there is nobody there at dinner time.
Planned 14-story hotel is not going to be built, and it is very unfortunate for the restaurant. It is like people are not coming, but the restaurant to serve them comes.
Of course, Daytonians would be curious and would pay a visit, even fans from Orlando and other smaller places would come, but will they be able to keep people coming and coming? This is a million-dollar question.
It is too far from the Beachside and from all the Resorts. It is not in the heart of either well developed and densely populated residential area, and not in the popular commercial/retail location.
How long will Vince Cater's last? Difficult to predict. Of course, there is still a chance that they will pull it off and make a must visit place.
Of course, Vince can afford to carry on even with a failing enterprise. There seems to be no exit strategy. It is a uniquely designed restaurant, and I doubt they thought about converting it to anything else, should the restaurant is no longer an viable option. But even if they did, who needs a space there? Figure that they spent $6 Mil on it, how can you sell it even for half that money in this economy?
I think their timing is off and I will not be surprised that after 6-8 months the euphoria of novelty will evaporate and the registers will get quieter. This is a real challenge for a 400 seats restaurant not to look deserted even with 100 patrons. And I am afraid 100 people on a daily basis could be a reality. A reality, that is so far from maintaining a 135-employee establishment.
I would be very happy if my predictions are wrong... Meanwhile, I will support it by going there. Not on January 19, but a few months later. They might need me and my friends more then ...
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