Roland’s closing April 15
Highway 7 steakhouse owners cite rising hydro rates for closing after nearly 60 years of operation
A local fine-dining restaurant on Highway 7 will be closing on April 15, with the owner citing rising hydro costs as part of the reason behind the decision.
Peter Brugger and his wife Brigitte moved here from Austria 29 years ago and began working at Roland’s Steakhouse right away.
They’ve owned the restaurant for 28 years and have worked there – sometimes seven days a week – over that period.
When a call came on March 2 asking the couple if they would sell their restaurant it was a surprise, said Peter, but it was an opportunity they didn’t want to pass up.
Peter said he can’t disclose the buyer’s name, but did say it was highly unlikely another restaurant would be opening in Roland’s wake. He said both the location of the restaurant and hydro costs were two major concerns for his business over the years.
“The hydro bill has more than doubled in the last two to three years, even with (energy) consumption going down,” said Peter. “We cook with natural gas, we don’t cook with hydro.”
The 28-year restaurant owner said his hydro bill went from around $2,500 to $3,000 all the way to $6,000 to $7,000 a month to keep the air-conditioning going in the restaurant over the summer.
Peter said he felt it was important to mention he had no worries his “amazing, loyal staff” of four cooks and six servers would quickly find work elsewhere.
“It’s the opportunity that came along – it’s brutally fast – winding down an operation in two and a half weeks is very scary,” said Peter.
Roland’s has stood at the site, on the highway east of the city, for half a century.