On August 9th, Wild Rice was supposed to reopen after its owners took a much-needed vacation. With a prominent Facebook presence, it has been fascinating to track what they've been doing instead of feeding Metuchen--the restaurant is still closed and their Facebook home page said they apologize for "any inconvenience" this might cause. Considering that my family ate there at least once a week since it opened, it's a big hole in our culinary life. Anybody else miss it? While we're trying desperately to make downtown as vital as possible, the beautiful but dark facade of Wild Rice is like a big raspberry to our hopes for Main Street Metuchen.
And so I propose the following--if you are on Facebook, befriend Wild Rice and let them know, in your own inimitable fashions, that we want our Wild Rice! And we want it now! (Be strong but be nice!)
Steve. Stories are stories. Another highly unlikely. Two owners don't take a brand new investment and sink it. One usually buys the other out. Place is too new be worth any goodwill. In the meantime you keep things running till then. Someone has still got to pay the rent or get evicted. Building owner ends up with all the equiity from the build out.
I say ??? cause the story I heard was the 2 owners didn't see eye to eye.
Steve ???? In other words, they are broke. No one closes up because the chef got sick of working after investing a ton of money in a build out. You do get another chef. I don't buy the story. And, no one I know of in the restaurant business makes announcements they are closing unless of course it is a landmark place (sometimes). Notices from the Sheriff seizing the place are the norm. I have seen it a number of time in Metuchen already. I feel sorry for them a dream and a lot of money tied up.
???
Jana--Let's be realistic and fair and I have been in business way too long to even begin to believe any argument like that. It's about money and lack thereof. They could not make a go. The wheels came off. No one throws that kind of financial investment away unless that happened and believe me a lot of money was lost on build out.
They ran out of cash pure and simple and had to make a go elsewhere. I admire them for trying and feel for them in their loss. When you close down like that the sheriff is usually not two steps behind.
From what I've heard literally on the street, the chef got sick of working and quit. If that's the case, can't they find another chef? And if they are closing down completely, wouldn't it be great if they told someone they were stopping.
I miss them! Especially on cold rainy nights when I wanted some soup!