The Willow Glen Resident

Cafe takes intermission from space in Garden Theater

By Cecily Barnes

After two years and eight months inside the Garden Theater, the Intermission Cafe has shut its doors indefinitely. Owner Mike Mikhail's recent heart illness hastened the cafe's closure, a move that was long in the coming, said his son, Peter Mikhail.

"We shut down last Sunday because of my father's health; last month he had to go to the hospital twice for angioplasty," Mikhail said. "But he really wanted to devote more time to his other businesses, anyway."

Even before the elder Mikhail fell ill, his son and daughter report, he had been intending to sell off the Intermission Cafe.

"It was becoming a time burden and also a financial burden, and we decided we'd rather close and sell it to someone who had the time and energy," daughter Sally Mikhail said. "[My father] was originally a silent partner, and it wasn't something he had much time to devote to."

When Mike Mikhail opened the Intermission Cafe nearly three years ago, he intended to be the silent partner of Adam Hamdy. Mikhail was busy running three vocational schools and counted on Hamdy to run the business. However, when the partnership broke up, Mikhail took over full ownership and all the time-consuming responsibilities that went along with it.

"The Intermission Cafe was [my father's] second business, and it has basically consumed our lives for the past two years [and] eight months," Peter Mikhail said. "He really wanted to devote more time to his vocational schools."

But since Mikhail signed a 10-year lease, he must find someone to take over the space. Hence the Mikhail family is looking to sell the Intermission Cafe. So far, they say, a lot of people seem interested.

"They're coming out of the woodwork," Mikhail said. "We're hoping it will be sold by the end of the month, but if it doesn't get sold at the price we want, we might re-open with a full-service restaurant and different menu."

Neighbor businesses in the Garden Theater are concerned about operating next to a vacant location and hope the Intermission Cafe will either re-open or be bought right away.

"It doesn't do me any good to have it closed," said Bob Paez, owner of the Garden Theater Barber Shop. "We need somebody else in there, another restaurant. It doesn't matter what kind, as long as it has good food and good service."

The Garden Theater, which has struggled for years to fill its spaces, is finally coming together, said Demetri Rizos, manager of the Willow Glen Business and Professional Association. The center is finally completely occupied, he explained, and most of the tenants are doing good business.

"It's too bad they closed down because that end of the Avenue is moving quickly with Peet's Coffee and Noah's," Rizos said. "It was bad timing. I just hope that whoever goes in there will work on a strong concept."

[ Back to Contents Page | Willow Glen Resident Home Page | Archives ]