The Restaurant — located next to Sunbirds in Chehalis — plans to close it doors on April 15.
People line up to pay their bills on Friday, March 29, 2017 at the Restaurant in Chehalis.
Waitresses clean and bus tables after the breakfast crowd has left on Friday, March 29, 2017, at The Restaurant in Chehalis.
A waitress serves coffee to customers at The Restaurant in Chehalis on Friday, March 31, 2017.
A sign on the window of The Restaurant in Chehalis explains to customers that it will be closing on April 15.
People line up to pay their bills and share a laugh on Friday, March 31, 2017, at the Restaurant in Chehalis.
After 18 years of serving up traditional comfort food for breakfast and lunch at The Restaurant at Sunbirds, the establishment will close this month, owner Marion Manzer confirmed for The Chronicle this week.
The Restaurant’s last day will be April 15. Manzer said they plan to have coffee and cookies that day to thank all of their longtime customers and say goodbye to the space.
“Some of them aren’t happy with change,” she said of a loyal customer base. “There are so many elderly and that’s their meeting spot. I’m hoping they do well finding new spots.”
The family received notice in March that The Restaurant’s lease through the Sunbird Shopping Center would be terminated at the end of April.
“It came as a surprise to us when we got the letter,” Manzer said.
Manzer said she has not learned what Sunbirds owners want to do with the space after The Restaurant is gone.
A message left for the owners of the Sunbird Shopping Center was not immediately returned.
Manzer and her family also own the Centerville Cafe at 111 N. Tower Ave. in Centralia and it will remain open. The family does not plan to reopen The Restaurant at another location.
“When we moved down here, I left two of my children to run it,” she said of The Restaurant.
They’ve since moved on, but the family still had an active role in running the business. The restaurant has five employees outside the family.
“We’re trying to absorb what we can (at the cafe),” she said.
The Centerville Cafe will close on April 15 so all employees can attend the coffee and cookie social at The Restaurant.
While Manzer said the loss of The Restaurant is disappointing, the family had concerns about flooding at the site, and now plans to put all its energy into the Centerville Cafe. Some of The Restaurant’s regular clientele are already moving down to the cafe.
“It all works out for the best,” she said. “As a family, we’re not going anywhere.”
