posted 04-11-2006 06:59 AM                    

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ON RESTAURANTS
Movie Tavern considering Columbus
Tuesday, April 11, 2006
Barnet D . Wolf
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

A new version of dinner and a movie may be on its way to central Ohio.

Movie Tavern, based in Dallas, is considering whether to convert Cinemark’s 12-screen Market at Mill Run and 10-screen Westpointe into the first Movie Taverns north of the Mason-Dixon line.

The small chain combines first-run movies with a casual dining menu. The food, which is cooked on site, ranges from upscale burgers and homemade pizzas to fried catfish and key lime cheesecake. Wine, beer and mixed drinks also are available.

Jeffrey P. Benson, president and chief executive of Movie Tavern, said he hopes a deal can be worked out, but said there are some stumbling blocks.

Documents filed with the state show that Movie Tavern wants the Division of Liquor Control to allow the company to take over the liquor license of South Beach, a Northeast Side business that Movie Tavern tentatively agreed to buy.

The liquor-license filing lists Benson and another Movie Tavern investor, Lee Roy Mitchell, who also is chairman and CEO of Cinemark, based in the Dallas suburb of Plano.

Cinemark is the nation’s fourth-largest motion-picture exhibitor. Internationally, it has 3,329 screens in 308 theaters in 33 states, Canada and throughout Latin and South America.In central Ohio, it has four theaters with 50 screens.

There are four Movie Taverns in the Dallas area, one in Houston, with others under development in Williamsburg, Va., and Lexington, Ky.

Movie Tavern’s modus operandi is to spend up to $2 million on a theater’s renovations, including turning one auditorium into a commercial kitchen, installing stadium seating, adding a bar and lounge and upgrading the lobby.

In many ways, the theater operates like a restaurant.

There is extra space between rows so each seat has a custom table and wait staff can move easily. Waiters clad in black can be summoned by the push of a button at the seats.

One of the two local theaters might be an express unit, in which people order food at a counter and pick it up, similar to a Panera or Baja Fresh.

The number of first-run cinema-restaurants has grown in recent years to more than 40 locations, according to the National Association of Theater Owners.

All movie houses offer food, from popcorn to nachos. Some local theaters offer a more extensive menu, including pizza and subs, and quite a few of them sell beer or wine. Some even deliver food to your seat.

But cinemas that offer newly released movies and an array of menu items cooked there and served at seats are rarer.

So far, the niche hasn’t done well here. The last attempt was Cinema Grill at the Continent, which lasted only five weeks. Before that, Cinema ’n Drafthouse on E. Broad Street crashed, and three Flickers restaurant-cinemas fizzled.

Benson says that won’t be the case with Movie Tavern.

"This is an upscale experience that works," he said. "We’ve shown that."

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posted 05-01-2006 03:58 PM                    

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Galaxy Theatres will bring 14 digital projectors to the Cannery Casino & Hotel in North Las Vegas, seven more than originally planned, making it the theater with the most digital projectors west of the Mississippi, according to the company.

The all-digital theater will open May 6, officials said, and Galaxy is selling reserve seating for Mission Impossible III and other summer movies, officials said. Tickets are available starting Friday at the theater or at www.galaxytheatres.com.

"Galaxy Cannery Theatres is opening more than its doors, it's opening Nevada's eyes to the new age of digital theater," said Rafe Cohen, president/COO of Galaxy.

Galaxy is a private company, operating theaters in Austin, Texas; Monroe and Tacoma, Wash; Porterville, Riverbank and Tulare, Calif.; and plans one in Las Vegas.

A year from now, Galaxy plans to open a 10-screen theater at Casino Fandango in Carson City.

The $10 million project will connect to the west side of the casino via a pedestrian bridge over Curry Street, officials said.

At 41,000 square feet, it will feature a digital projector along with all digital sound, wall-to-wall screens and "rocker" seats.

"We use our theaters as community centers during the off-hours," Cohen said during the announcement of the Carson City theater. "We look forward to not only showing films but hosting business meetings, social events, and film festivals. With our digital projection system, we can even capture HDTV signals to show the latest television or sports programming on the big screen."

Galaxy officials said it will be the first digital theater in Northern Nevada, which film experts see as a novelty.

Las Vegas TV Partners

Officials of Las Vegas TV Partners, owners of KTUD-TV, Channel 25 and Cox Cable Channel 14 in Las Vegas, have announced that the company has purchased CMX Century Productions, a production and post-production facility in Las Vegas, for an undisclosed amount.

Las Vegas TV Partners, a joint venture between The Greenspun Corp. and Catalyst Investors of New York, sought to acquire CMX Century Productions from Chicago businessman Demetrius Brown, when its sale was announced in 2005.

Because of CMX Century production's resources and talent pool, Las Vegas TV Partners recognized this as an opportunity to strengthen its growing media conglomerate and capabilities, Las Vegas TV Partners said.

As part of a new re-branding campaign, CMX Productions will get a new name, Sun Media Productions. Sun Media Productions will continue to cater to advertising agencies, television shows and local business clients.

Harrah's Entertainment

Harrah's Entertainment Inc. was named one of Fortune magazine's "100 Top MBA Employers," an annual poll of Master's of Business Administration students from the nation's top business schools.

Harrah's was ranked No. 40 in its inaugural appearance on the poll, conducted by global research and communications firm Universum Communications. It was the highest-ranked gaming and lodging company in the survey.

"We are honored to be recognized as the gaming industry's MBA employer of choice by the group whose opinions count the most -- business students themselves," said Gary Loveman, chairman, CEO and president of Harrah's Entertainment. "Our reputation as an innovator begins with recruiting, developing and retaining talented managers and executives, and MBAs are a crucial part of that mix. By actively seeking out the nation's best and brightest MBAs, we strengthen the pool of future general managers and senior executives who will continue our company's growth story in the years to come."

The annual feature is based on a survey of nearly 5,000 MBA students from the nation's top 43 business schools by Universum. Each respondent is asked to select the five companies or organizations they would most like to work for out of a list of 179 potential employers; rankings are determined by the percentage of respondents placing a company in the top five.

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