CORTEZ – Tom Theophilopoulos closed the doors to Izzy’s Place diner less than five months after opening due to what he described as bad timing.
“Once the snowbirds went home, business dropped through the floor,” he said. “I opened Feb. 28, and after the end of March my business fell by about 60%.”
Theophilopoulos opened the doors at the 12012 Cortez Road location after the Feb. 1 closing of Slicker’s Eatery, in the space Slicker’s Eatery leased for five years.
Theophilopoulos said that due to being open for just a short period of time, he didn’t have the chance to develop a local clientele.
“I’m a Canadian citizen, and due to the money exchange rate, I lost a lot of money that could have kept me going,” he said.
He also cited Cortez Road traffic as a concern.
“The traffic killed me,” he said. “I think people going toward the beach didn’t want to come in because they thought they wouldn’t get back out.”
Theophilopoulos, who has been in the restaurant business for more than 40 years – including serving as director of operations at four restaurant chains and running Hard Rock Cafes in Canada and the northeastern United States – plans to start a catering business.
“If the catering business does well, I will look for a better location and better timing,” he said.
A woman who was inside the vacated building earlier in the week said the space will reopen as a sports bar. She did not give further details and she said the paperwork is being processed.
