|
Westgate
Center to welcome Garduño's
eatery in spring By
Scott Wong The
Arizona Republic
Garduño's
Margarita Factory says it will open its first
West
Valley
location next spring at
Westgate
City
Center
, the massive retail, entertainment and office project
anchored by Glendale Arena.
Known for its traditional Mexican dishes, oyster bar and more
than 350 varieties of margaritas, Garduño's has other Arizona
locations south of Chandler Fashion Center and at the Shops at
Gainey Village in Scottsdale. The small chain also has 11
restaurants in
Albuquerque
,
Las Cruces
,
N.M.
, and
Las Vegas
.
Garduño's joins a growing list of high-profile restaurants
with ties to the
East
Valley
that have begun to test the waters west of Interstate 17.
Gordon Biersch Brewery Restaurant and Yard House also have
signed on at the 223-acre Westgate development, just off
Loop
101 at
Glendale Avenue
.
"The
most successful East Valley establishments are setting up
their flag in the West Valley for the first time," said
Jeffrey Hecht, spokesman for Westgate's developer, the Ellman
Cos. "With the dynamic growth of the West Valley, coupled
with the Westgate development coming on line, we will see a
tremendous amount of business coming through their
doors."
Cameron Eghlimi and John Johnston, co-owners of the Arizona
Garduño's, wanted to make sure the timing was right before
committing to Westgate, Eghlimi said.
"Now we think the timing is a good timing," the
Scottsdale
resident said.
Just north of the restaurant, Cabela's outdoors megastore will
welcome its first customers next week. To the south, the
Arizona Cardinals will kick off their first pre-season game in
August at their new football stadium. And Westgate's first
phase, about 500,000 square feet of shops, restaurants, movie
theaters and offices, is set to open in late October.
Planned for the southwestern corner of
Glendale
and 95th avenues, the Glendale Garduño's will occupy a
stand-alone 12,000-square-foot building. It will seat about
400.
Eghlimi said he hopes to break ground by October, with an
expected April 2007 completion date.
|
